


said to him it wasn't the cold that kept me up, it was his warmth

by holy1_hell1



Series: the lights were on but no one was home [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Anchors, Angst with a Happy Ending, BAMF Melissa McCall, Dread Doctors - Freeform, F/F, F/M, Good Alpha Scott McCall (Teen Wolf), Good Parent Melissa McCall, Good Theo Raeken, Liam Dunbar is Theo Raeken's Anchor, Liam is So Done, M/M, Memories, Pack Mom Melissa McCall, Past Child Abuse, Protective Melissa McCall, Protective Scott McCall (Teen Wolf), Protective!Theo, Scott is a Good Friend, Slow Burn, Temporary Character Death, Theo Raeken is Part of the Pack, Theo is a Little Shit, Torture, Werewolf, Werewolf Theo Raeken, banshee - Freeform, chimera, dad!Theo
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-01
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2020-11-09 05:51:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 22,440
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20848556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/holy1_hell1/pseuds/holy1_hell1
Summary: a week of torture, a child and a crazy lady is all it takes for Beacon Hills to be at the center of another supernatural crisis.





	1. ONE

**Author's Note:**

> i was watching the originals and thought what would theo be like if he was a dad - also please ignore any inconsistencies, i am a dumbass so some shit might absolutely and completely wrong.

**THEO RAN,** his feet pounding against the ground, kicking up dust and leaves everywhere. There was only one thing on his mind, and that was to get to the hospital, he had to make sure she was safe, that she would live. He stopped and ducked behind a tree, trying to get his bearings, he strained his hearing, he had to make sure that they weren't being followed. He let out a breath he was holding, he couldn't hear any heartbeats, but he continued to run, not wanting to take any chances with the psychopaths that tortured him.

Theo burst through the doors, hoping to find Melissa McCall, she was one of the only people Theo would trust her with. He caught her scent near the emergency room, she was talking to Scott and Stiles. The former made a face when Theo's scent hit him, something was off, he turned around and saw a half-dead Theo limping, clutching something in his grasp. The closer he got to them, the worse the scent was, it was like rotting fish. Theo said nothing as he trusted something into Mellisa's arms before collapsing on the floor, it was only then that Scott noticed the sliver tainted blood that was oozing out of Theo's nose and mouth.

**A WEEK AGO**

After the hunters and Anuk-ite were beaten Theo was left to deal with emotions he couldn't process. The wall he had built started to crumble, brick by brick it fell until it the fissures burst and he drowned under a tsunami of emotions. He still remembers the day when the wall came crashing down.

_Theo walked out of the hospital, his shoulders sagging as it stitched itself back together. The stench of fear and death in the air choked him, his lungs screaming for fresh air. He looked back, he could hear Liam talking to Scott, they were happy. The stench slowly being replaced by a scent of relief and happiness, he wasn't drowning as much, but he was still underwater and he needed to breathe. He took one last look at the hospital, at the pack and he got into his truck and drove off, the feeling of longing making its way into his stolen heart._

_He didn't know how he got here, he was at the Beacon Hills Cemetery. The smell of rotting flesh made its way to Theo's nose and it took everything in him to not throw up right there. He took a deep breath and walked into the cemetery, his feet guiding him to the graves of his family. He stopped at three headstones, three stone-carved headstones, with scraggly writing, he was the one who buried them after all. And that was all it took, the three headstones with barely eligible writing on them. He dropped to his knees and let out a scream, it was the most primal yet human thing that ever came out of his mouth, because at that time he wasn't a teenager who just fought for his life, no, he was a just child mourning the loss of his family - the family that was so wrongfully taken from an 8-year-old boy. Tears ran down his face, mixing with blood, sweat and dirt, the salty taste contaminated with a million other things. It had been years since he mourned someone, someone he loved and now he was left with no one._

_He doesn't remember how long he sat there for, crying until nothing but broken noises came out. He must've passed out because the next thing he remembers is waking up to sunlight hitting his face. He has never felt so empty in his life._

And now here he was, a homeless 18 year old with a past that's destroying his future. The cold air blew through his window, reminding him of his plight. He pulled his hoodie on tighter, trying to stay warm. He may be a chimaera but that doesn't mean he has the natural abilities of a werewolf to stay warm, he could shift but the pain was too much, every single one of his bones breaking and rearranging themselves was too much for Theo right now, especially if he hadn't eaten nor slept in almost 3 days. He debated calling Liam, the two of them had developed a friendship of sorts after the war, whenever Liam needed help, Theo would be there, maybe it was his way of paying Liam back from pulling out from hell, either way, Theo would be there, and most likely being the bait because the beta deserved to live, he was only 17, he had his whole life ahead of him.

He had finally fallen asleep when a knock on his window woke him up. Theo groaned all he wanted was a bit of sleep, the person knocked again, this time more rapidly. He huffed, rolling down his window, he expected to see a flashlight pointed at this face but was instead met with the barrel of a gun. He stiffened, every sense now fully alert.

"Get out." The person demanded.

Theo complied, he didn't feel like getting shot today. He got out slowly, thinking of a plan to knock the person out and take them back to Scott's.

"Good doggy." The person snarked.

Theo growled lowly, of course, it was a hunter. Within a second Theo unleashed his claws and swiped the gun away, he came face to face with a girl much older than him. She had a faint pink scar running down her face. He kicked her in the stomach, causing her to fly back. He went in for a punch but was met with her palm. She punched him square in the face, he staggered back, clutching his now broken nose. He got up, eyes yellow and swiped at her face, she easily ducked and Theo caught her punch. He went in for another punch when she flashed her eyes, Theo faltered, and that was all she needed. She reached into her pocket and jabbed a needle into his neck. Black spots dotted his vision as he crumpled to the ground and hit it with a soft thud.

-

Theo woke up to what felt like a thousand volts coursing through his body.

"Morning sunshine," She smirked.

"What the fuck?" He growled out.

"It's quite simple, you tell me what I need to know and maybe I'll let you go out of here alive, and if you don't tell me what I need to know, well let's just say death would be a more pleasant alternative."

Theo blinked, unmoved by the lady's speech, "Is that supposed to scare me? Because trust me, the only thing that's scary about your breath."

Her eyes narrowed as pressed a button, Theo screamed as electricity flowed through him, she took her finger off and it stopped.

"You'll learn that antagonizing me will result in painful repercussions." She explained.

"Is that the best you've got? I've literally been to hell, you're nothing compared to that."

"Trust me," She leaned in, "I'll make hell look like heaven."

Theo scoffed, nothing could beat hell.

"Now, tell me about the _Ius Vitae_."

"The what?" He questioned, confusion clouding his face.

"Don't play dumb with me boy." She grabbed his face, her breath fanning over his face.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

She let go of his face and walked back to the table on the left of him, she turned a dial to the right and pressed the button again. Theo convulsed against the cold metal table as another round of electricity flowed through him.

"Don't lie to me boy." She sneered.

"I'm not lying! I don't know what you're talking about." He protested.

"You listen to me boy, and you listen good, when I come back you better tell me the truth, or else." She left, leaving the threat hanging in the air.

Theo racked his brain, nothing came up related to _Ius Vitae. _It was only then when he realised that he was in the Dread Doctors' lab, fear washed over him. His breaths became shorter and sharper, his chest was heaving.

_Theo. Theo. Theo._

He shook his head, trying to clear the voice that was lurking at the back of his mind.

_Theo. Theo. Theo._

He dug his nails into his palm, the pain grounding him as her voice faded away to the back of his mind. He took a deep breath and looked around, finding a way to escape, but there wasn't anything he could do, he could hear two heartbeats outside the door. He looked down, he was strapped to the table, leather restraints holding his torso down and his arms and legs apart - he felt like a fucking high school experiment. 

_Ius Vitae, _he was pretty sure that it was Latin, but he didn't know a lick of Latin_. _Though he'd bet Liam would know, he was a history nerd after all. Theo cursed himself, he should've gone to the pack meeting, he probably wouldn't have been in this situation, but no, he had to be stubborn, although he doubted that'd make any difference, she probably would've found him either way - but the thought of her hurting the pack stirred something in Theo, something he hadn't felt in a long time, it was ironic though, he wasn't a part of the pack yet he would die for them.

"Are you ready to talk?" She questioned, interrupting his train of thought.

"Listen here lady, I don't know you are or what you want but I know one thing, I don't have a fucking clue about what _Ius Vitae_ is."

The lady scoffed and walked towards the table and pressed the button. Theo screamed as another jolt of electricity coursed through his body.

"What did I tell you?"

"I'm telling the truth! Listen to my heartbeat."

The lady laughed, "As if I'd believe you, I know all about you Theo Raeken, you're just like me-"

"I'm nothing like you!" He growled out.

"Oh really? I think Tara would disagree, you killed her after all, hell, you killed your own parents. I mean how twisted do you have to be? You're just like me, whether you like it or not."

She grabbed a syringe and stabbed his neck as he struggled against her grip.

-

Theo woke up to the taste of blood in his mouth. He blinked groggily, his eyes adjusting to the sudden change in lighting, he looked around, he was still in the godforsaken sewer. He looked down at his arm and saw an IV connected to his left forearm, the line connected to a bag with a blue liquid. It smelt of wolfsbane but there was something different about it.

"Ah, you're awake now!" She exclaimed, "I've been waiting for quite a long time."

She got up from the floor and walked towards the table. She put on a pair of gloves as Theo watched helplessly, she grabbed a knife and dipped it into a petri dish containing the same blue liquid that was being pumped into him.

"Now, you're going to tell me what you know."

"I'm telling you the truth, I don't know anything!"  


She tsked, and ran the knife along his abdomen, drawing blood. Theo gritted his teeth to stop himself from screaming out, the blue liquid burning the skin it cut. Theo stared at it bewildered, he was a chimaera, this shouldn't have hurt him.

She let out a maniacal laugh, a frightening gleam in her eyes as she explained what she was injecting into Theo, "It's quite a fascinating cocktail, quite useful if you want to hurt chimaeras. A bit of wolfsbane, white baneberry, mountain ash, belladonna and water hemlock, oh! and mercury. Extremely poisonous to humans, chimaeras and were-creatures, courtesy of yours truly. Though you have to be careful, too much and they'd die within seconds, especially if it's injected right into the heart."

Theo stilled, his heartbeat racing as he realised what was being injected into him, none of these were supposed to harm him but they were, she figured out a way to hurt chimaeras. His body can't fight everything off, especially if it's being circulated around his body.

"Who are you?" He questioned.

She smirked and said nothing.

"Are you deaf, I asked you who you are."

She continued smirking and and leaned in close and whispered, "I'm your worst nightmare."

-

Theo doesn't know how long he's been here. The constant electrocution and torture made everything blur into one long memory. It could be three days, a week or a month, he doesn't know. He hasn't slept for a long time, she kept on injecting him with adrenaline and her blue concoction. His wounds stopped healing and he was in constant pain.

"Are ready to talk?"

"Fuck you." Theo spat.

She was about to say something but was interrupted when her phone started to buzz. She looked at it in annoyance, but that expression quickly morphed into one of delight and she walked out of the room.

Theo was now left on his own, save for the two guards outside. He leaned his head back against the table, taking a deep breath, he strained against his restraints. The leather burning into his skin, he suspected she doused them with her deadly concoction. His muscles convulsed as he pulled harder and harder, his body screaming at him to stop. He stopped straining and let his limbs go limp, the leather still burning his skin but at a less intensity. He closed his eyes, trying to think of a way to get here, he could howl but he'd doubt the pack would save him, and even if they did, it's be too late - he'd be dead before they even left.

The woman walked back in, this time with something in her arms. Theo's eyes widened when he recognised the new scent. He stilled, she shouldn't have known, it was impossible. Theo had made sure that no one knew about her.

"Let her go." He growled.

She ignored him and set her on the table. The woman grabbed a dropper and sucked up some of the blue liquid. Theo watched in horror as she walked towards her and dropped some of it onto her arms. She let out a cry and that was all it took to break Theo.

"Don't! Don't hurt her! I'll tell you everything."

She laughed, " Well that was easier than I expected."

She walked towards Theo and stood there expectantly. Theo started to mumble things under his breath.

"What? Speak up boy."

He continued to mumble absolute nonsense but it was too quiet for her to hear, he hoped that his impromptu plan worked. She came closer and he bit the top of her ear off, the tase of blood immediately filling his mouth, he spat it out, not noticing the silver tinge to it. 

"You bastard, she's going to be paying for this."

Theo growled as she walked back to her, when she reached for the knife laying next to the petri dish, something in snapped - primal instinct taking over. He strained against the restraints with impossible strength, the loud snap of chains got the woman's attention, her eyes widened as she saw he was now free. Within seconds he was across the room, smashing her head on the table and dumping the remaining blue liquid onto her face, she screamed out in agony as she clawed at her face. The guards came rushing in, he turned his attention to him, knocking them out cold within seconds. 

"Dadda?"

Theo turns around immediately, his expression softening as he goes to his daughter. 

"Hey baby, I've got you, she won't touch you."

"Momma say hi."

Theo let out a strangled noise at the mention of her mother, his heart clenches, she was gone.

He kissed her forehead as he lifted her up. The sound of thundering footsteps bought him out of his haze, he looked down at her and noticed her blood stained forehead and finally saw the mercury dripping down his nose. He had to get her to Melissa, he hoped she would take her when he died. Men burst through the door but Theo was out within seconds, using his chimera speed to his advantage. He ran out and headed straight to the hospital. 


	2. TWO

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is slightly shorter but the next one should be longer, also most chapters will contain flashbacks becuase exposition.

**SCOTT STARED AT THEO'S BODY**, his torn t-shirt leaving no room for the imagination - his chest and abdomen covered in cuts and bruises, the smell of burning flesh and rotting meat kept him in a daze and it wasn't until the baby cried out that Scott even noticed her.

"Dadda! Want dadda." She screamed, making grabby hands at Theo's body.

He looked at his mother, absolutely lost.

"Get him up and put him on a stretcher, I'll get Dr. Geyer to look at him, I need to take a quick look at her first."

Scott nodded, he reached out to grab Theo, but recoils his hand as soon as his hand touches him. He let out a yelp of pain, his skin sizzling. Stiles look at him bewildered, the human having no problem touching the chimera. 

Realisation hits Scott as he exclaimed, "Wolfsbane!"

"How much? It shouldn't affect him this badly." Stiles questioned.

"I, uh, I don't know-"

"Enough with the chit chat boys, pick him up!" Dr. Geyer ordered.

They obliged, Scott gritting trough the pain of his skin burning. They laid him on the stretcher, and Scott finally looked him. His half sunken eyes no longer contained the devilish fire he was so used to, instead the were glossed over, tears blanketing his eyes as he slipped in and out of conscious. His body was covered in blood, there was stains of black blood all across his body and some new cuts freshly oozing out what looked like mercury. 

They watched as he rolled Theo's body away, Dr. Geyer calling nurses to help him.

"Call the pack." Scott spoke.

-

Liam was slowly losing control, he was hanging on by a thread, waiting for it to snap. He paced back and forth along the corridor, waiting for his step-father to come back with good news.

"Liam," Scott spoke, "You need to calm down."

He stopped pacing, looking down at the floor he took a deep breath, the scent of hospital disinfectant and Theo's blood wafted up his nose, causing him to gag. Scott walked up to him gently guiding him back to the sofas littered around the floor. He sat down, his leg shaking up and down, he could feel everyone's eyes on him. They knew that him and Theo were friends, the stupid chimera had risked his life every time for him, the pack wasn't blind to that, but they still didn't trust Theo.

The doors opened and a disheveled Dr. Geyer and Melissa McCall walked out. Liam could smell their regret and sadness.

"We don't know how long he can last, he has an hour, maybe two at best." Melissa explained, "We did our best, but then damage was already done. He's dying, the mercury affecting his system, along with other toxins."

"What about the girl?" Stiles questioned.

"We've confirmed that she's his daughter, they're genetically similar." Dr. Geyer stated.

Scott rubbed his face, "What about the nine herbs?" 

Melissa shook her head, "The damage was worse than we thought. Whoever did this to him wanted him to suffer, we found mercury, mountain ash, water hemlock, white baneberry and so much more in his system," She said softly, "We found mistletoe splinters in his stomach, someone forced him to eat it - it's a miracle he's still alive."

"Bite him." 

Everyone looked at him like he'd grown a second head.

"What? No!" Stiles squawked.

"He's dying, he has a daughter!" Liam exclaimed.

"It's Theo!" Stiles retaliated, "You know everything he's done, he tried to get you to kill Scott and then actually killed him himself! He's a monster, there is no way I'm going to let Scott bite him!"

The thread snapped.

"Oh yeah? You and who's army? As far as I'm concerned, you're no different, I mean the _Nogitsune_ killed people didn't it-"

"Enough!" Scott exclaimed, his eyes now red.

But that didn't stop him, without Theo's unnecessary comments to distract him, his anger was at an all time high.

"No!" Liam challenged, "What makes him so different, you had no problem with Peter, Deucalion-"

"Liam!" Scott roared, his voice thundering with the power of a True Alpha. 

Liam was heaving with anger, his claws out and his eyes yellow. 

"Control yourself." Scott ordered.

Though it had no effect on him, anger coursed through his veins, fuelling every cell with power. He tried to run to Scott but a pair of strong arms held him back. He looked up and saw Derek's face, adorned with a neutral expression. 

"Liam, shift back." Scott's gentle tone calmed Liam a bit, but definitely not enough to shift back.

"I can't." He gritted through his teeth.

Scott took a sharp breath, "Your mantra Liam, say it."

He started muttering the mantra, though nothing happened. His eyes were still yellow and his claws were still out. 

"I can't Scott, I can't shift back!" Liam's voice quivered, panic making his way into the young beta's voice.

Scott looked at Derek, a silent conversation took place and within seconds they were dragging Liam into a shower stall. Liam yelped as cold water hit his back, the surprise grounding him. He could feel his claws retracting and the anger subsiding. The gravity of the situation hit him and he realised what he said.

"Oh my god, Scott- I'm sorry, I didn't mean it, I-"

"It's okay, you weren't yourself. But do you know why you couldn't shift back."

"I- no, I don't know." If Scott noticed Liam's heartbeat hitch, he didn't know say anything. 

Liam knew exactly why, it took him almost a near death experience to realise that it was because Theo was his anchor. 

_"It is 2 AM you psychopath, what is so important that it couldn't wait until the morning?" Theo's muffled voice came through his phone speaker._

_"Hunters." Liam whispered, hiding behind a tree._

_He could hear the sudden rush in Theo's heartbeat, signalling that he was now fully awake and alert._

_"Where?"_

_"North of the preserve."_

_"I'll be there in 10."_

_It didn't take Theo 10 minutes, in fact it actually took him 4 minutes (not that Liam counted). Theo creeped around and crouched next to Liam._

_"How many?" He questioned._

_"One, maybe two but she was here, I could smell it." _

_"Okay, who else know about the hunters?"_

_"Just us."_

_Theo looked at him with an unreadable expression and muttered something under his breath that Liam couldn't quite catch._

_"Come out, come out you mutts." The hunter sang._

_They froze, Liam recognised the scent - it was Preston, one of the hunters that ran over Brett and Lori._

_"I know you're out there, I know you're here Liam!" _

_Liam's heartbeat increased, he took a deep breath, grounding himself._

_"Oh Liam! I know you're here, is your face still the same? I remember it quite clearly, the grief stricken look when I killed your werewolf friends. I saw them take their last breaths, their face illuminated by the headlight of my car."_

_Liam snarled, his fangs drawing blood as he bit his lips harder. He scrambled to get up, but Theo's had grabbed at his bicep firmly._

_"Liam." He warned, "This is what he wants."_

_"I don't care, I want to rip his throat out. He killed Brett and Lori."_

_"And killing him won't bring them back."_

_"I don't care."_

_"Fine."_

_Liam wavered, "I- what?"_

_"I said fine, you want to go charging at a hunter who probably has an AR loaded with wolfsbane bullets - be my guest."_

_Liam snarled at Theo, though there was no real malice behind it._

_"Come in Liam, you can't hide forever." Preston taunted._

_Liam was conflicted, a part of him wanted to jump out and kill the hunter but the other part of him agreed with Theo, it was suicide to go attack him without a plan._

_"Rossler! Come out, look who I found!" Preston hollered._

_Liam growled lowly, his chest heaving with anger. He could hear feet shuffling and then leaves crunching._

_"I found Liam, you remember him right?"_

_Rossler chuckled, "Of course I do, how can you forget a face like that? I still remember the day he got his friends killed."_

_Something inside Liam snapped, anger taking over every logical cell in Liam's body ( and let's be real, there were hardly any), he charged, he could hear Theo's annoyed huff as he came face to face with the two hunters._

_Liam ran, ducking past the bullets that rained around him. He grabbed Preston by the throat and held him against a tree, his head hitting the trunk roughly. He could hear a scuffle behind him but he was too focused on the hunter in front of him to notice the sound of squelching flesh and a pained grunt. He pressed his throat harder, depriving the man of oxygen, Liam smashed his head against the tree once again and he was out cold. He turned back to see Theo and Rossler wrestling for the gun, Theo had the upper hand. Just as Liam was about to step in, Rossler head butted Theo, causing him to stumble backwards. Rossler took the sudden loss of competition and grabbed the gun and shot Theo. Anger coursed through Liam's veins as the sound of Theo's pained noise roared around him, blind rage guiding him, he grabbed the gun and used the end of it to knock out Rossler (more times that necessary, but that doesn't matter)._

_Liam ran towards Theo who was on the ground writhing in pain._

_"Theo!"_

_All Liam got was a pained grunt. _

_"Get me a lighter." Theo gritted out, his teeth grinding._

_Liam fumbled around, checking the pockets of the now unconscious hunters, letting out a sigh of relief when he found it in Preston's pocket. He ran back to Theo, who was now considerably pale. He held the lighter up to the bullet wound (which was missing the bullet, he assumed Theo dug it out.) Theo groaned in pain, keeping the screaming to a minimal. A few seconds later, any remaining wolfsbane had been burned out, leaving the stench of the burning flesh in the air, causing Liam to wrinkle his nose. _

_"You better?" _

_Theo nodded, motioning for Liam to help him stand up. He helps Theo up, unintentionally taking the pain away. They grab the unconscious hunters, and drag them back to Theo's truck. _

_"Why were you out this late anyway?"_

_"I couldn't sleep, so I climbed onto to roof to stare at the stars when I smelt them. I read somewhere that on clear nights scents can travel for miles before fading, it was actually really interesting. Did you know-"_

_He's interrupted by Theo's chuckle, weak but still a chuckle. Liam blushes, realising that he was rambling._

_"Shut up asshole." _

_Theo laughs even harder causing Liam to blush furiously and scowl. He stalks towards Theo's car, dragging a protesting Theo with him. _

_The ride back home was relatively quiet, the occasional buzz of insects making its way through the open window._

_The sheriff was not happy to see them at 3 A.M, though all things considered, he was glad they came to him, even if he wanted to murder them himself. They shoved the hunters into the jail cell and he texted Agent McCall about it._

_Theo dropped Liam back home, who had to sneak back in. It was then in the comfort of his bed that he realised where his unadulterated anger came from, it couldn't have been more obvious._

And now here he was, rushing back to the main area, guilt rolling off him in waves.

"Stiles-" Liam stopped midway, realising that the human was nowhere to be seen.

"Just give him some time." Lydia told him, her voice just above a whisper.

"He doesn't have long." Scott stated, "I can smell it."

The noise of a child crying startles everyone.

"Dadda!" 

Liam turns around, only to be met by a 2 year barreling her way through everyone. He jumps back as she makes a beeline to Theo's room, everyone trailing behind her.

"Dadda! Up dadda!" She cries.

They all stare at each other.

"Okay is no one finding this absolutely insane? There is a child here calling Theo dad, doesn't that weird anyone out?" Manon questions.

"I find it weird." Malia contributes.

"Dadda!" She wails.

The supernaturals cringe, her high pitch whining painful to their sensitive ears.

She turns around, running towards Scott, "Dadda! Up Dadda!"

Scott's heart breaks as he scoops up the crying girl, he looks at her and makes his decision. He wordlessly hands her to Derek (who looks wildly uncomfortable at the prospect of holding a crying child).

He bites Theo.


	3. THREE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> theo wakes up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did not plan for so much to happen, yikes - also a levels suck

**THE ROOM WAS SILENT, **the constant beeping the only noise filling the room. Everyone held their breath, the small hiccups of Theo's apparent daughter caused all eyes to shift on her.

"Dadda! Up! Dadda please."

As if on command, Theo rises up, his eyes flashing a brilliant blue before he slumps back onto the bed, his chest rising and falling steadily.

-

_Theo woke up gasping, his skin burning against the cold table of the morgue. He stumbles out, waiting for his inevitable punishment._

_"Theo," Her voice drawls._

_He stays still, waiting for Tara to come over, her putrid breath fanning across his face as her hand plunges into his chest, rightfully taking what's hers._

_"Theo," She's close._

_He stands there, welcoming her, "It's okay, you don't have to stop."_

_She grabs her heart, holding it over him as he watched with glossed eyes and he's back in the morgue again._

_-_

Liam snaps his head up at the sudden increase in Theo's heartbeat, the monitor beeping wildly. Before he could do anything, Melissa comes rushing in, pushing Liam out the way.

"Theo? Can you hear me Theo? I want you to know that you're safe here."

Scott comes rushing in, his eyes red as he looked around for danger.

"What happened?"

"There was a sudden increase in heartbeat-"

"Dadda! Want dadda!"

Liam cringed at the high pitched noise, his ears ringing as she continued wailing. He watched as Melissa picked her up and continued whispering calming nothings to Theo. His heartbeat steadily decreases and his daughter calms down a bit.

Before Melissa could do anything else, Theo shifts in his bed, groaning. Their heads snap towards him as he turns to the side and start gagging. Black gunk starts to spew out of his mouth, his eyes half lidded as he holds him self up. Melissa's there in seconds, gently rubbing his back as his daughter makes grabby hands at him. He heaved a few times before collapsing back onto the bed, his fluttering before losing consciousness.

"Is that supposed to happen?" Scott questions.

"I honestly don't know, but it's better if it comes out instead of staying in." She explains, "Here hold her, I'm going to get someone to clean this up."

With that she thrusts her into Scott's hands and leaves. Scott blinks, momentarily confused as he stares at the crying child.

"Hey, hey, it's okay." He says, attempting to calm her down, "It's alright, I've got you."

He pats her back as he rocks her, murmuring calming things into ears - she quietens at that, a part of her recognising the alpha.

Liam stares at Theo, the chimera looking absolutely defeated, his eye were growing in bags and his cheeks hollow. Guilt makes its way into him, how did he not notice that Theo had gone missing? 

"Liam, it's not your fault." Scott whispers, afraid to wake the sleeping baby.

"But it it, he's my responsibility Scott. I should've noticed that he was gone, but I didn't and now he's here on the brink of death."

Before Scott could say anything else, the monitor started beeping wildly.

"Theo?" Liam questions, making his way back to the bed.

Scott rushes outside, taking Theo's daughter with him as he calls for his mother. Within seconds she's rushing back in. 

"It's okay, you don't have to stop," Theo mutters.

Liam looks at him questioningly as Melissa tries her best to wake him up.

"That's what he told me." 

Liam whirls around and see Malia standing by the door, "When I attacked him, when you brought him back from hell - those were his exact words 'It's okay, you don't have to stop', verbatim" 

The wild beeping stops, changing to a loud stretch of beep, meaning one thing.

"Liam, go get Dr Geyer, he's flatlining!" Melissa barks at him.

He rushes out, his mind moving a million miles an hour as he looks for his step-dad.

"Dad! Theo, he's- he's flatlining."

They both run back to Theo's room, grabbing another nurse on their way. Liam stops outside the door, watching from the window as Melissa did chest compressions. His breath hitched, Theo's dead. It's can't be, he was the big bad chimera, he couldn't die. He stands there for who knows how long, watching as they alternate between chest compressions, pumping him with a multitude of drugs and shocking him. 

He lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding when he hears the steady beeping again. He scrambles back inside, his chest heaving.

"Is he alright?"

Melissa nods, her hair falling in front of her face as she monitors his heartbeat. He stands next to her, watching the steady rise and fall of Theo's chest. It stops. His body starts convulsing and before he knows it, he's being pushed out of the room, one again left to watch Theo fighting for his life.

-

_"Theo" _

_He waits, and waits and waits, every time. He gave up on running, because no matter how far he ran, she alway came back for her heart. _

_He stop breathing as her hand plunges into his chest, rightfully reclaiming what was once hers. He watches, staring into her cold brown eyes, water dropping onto his open chest, mixing with blood, he doesn't know if it's his blood or hers, though he supposes it doesn't matter, they're both dead after all. _

_He's back in the morgue, but this time it's different, he can feel it. _

_"Theo."_

_He's out, waiting, and waiting and waiting. She's there, but she's holding someone; her hand gripping a tuft of hair as she stalks towards Theo. His eyed widen._

_"Tara no please," He whispers, "No, take me instead, she's a child, she doesn't deserve this." _

_The statement leaves a bitter taste in a mouth, it was ironic, Tara didn't deserve it either. _

_"Tara no, please, take me." _

_She doesn't listen though, she has a twisted smile on her face, her eyes glinting. She moves to face her, and before Theo could react, her hand plunges into her tiny chest._

_"TARA NO."_

_He's up gasping, the cold metal a contrast to his burins skin._

_He's out, but he isn't waiting. He stalk the corridor, walking, listening for the light tap of water hitting the tiled floor. He finds her waiting by the emergency room._

_"Dadda!" She wails._

_"Tara please, take me, leave her out of this."_

_Theo watches as Tara cocks her head to the side, this isn't the first time she's heard him beg ._

_He walks up, slowly, his eyes trained on his dead sister. He reaches for her hand, it's ice cold._

_"Here, take me instead, leave her out of this." He whispers, bringing her hadn't to his chest and pushing it in._

_-_

"Take me instead, leave her out of this."

They watch as Theo mutters under his breath, his breathing rapid. The whole room being clogged by the smell of fear and regret, all rolling off in waves from Theo. Liam sneaks a glance at Stiles, his face a neutral expression, his eyes trained on the chimera.

"Stiles, can we talk?"

His eyes find Liam, they hold no emotion as he wordlessly nods and follows Liam out of Theo's room, he doesn't miss the pointed look Lydia gives him. He shudders a bit, god that woman was a scary.

"I want to apologise, I shouldn't have said what I said, I just got so angry. I- yeah, I'm sorry."

Stiles nods, "I get it, I'm just watching out for the pack, alright? They're my family and I'll be damnned if Theo gets his way again."

Liam says nothing as he nods, making his way back to the room. 

"Tara, please, take me instead." He whimpers.

His heart rate shoots up again.

"Theo, you need to wake up." Scott says, gently shaking him.

It elicits no response from him, he's still whimpering and starts to shake. 

"Theo, wake up." Scott says, much more firmly this time.

Again, nothing.

"Theo, get up!" 

Theo's claws are out, digging into his palm as he draws blood, staining the pristine white sheets.

"You're his Alpha, use your Alpha powers." Stiles says.

Scott takes a deep breath, "THEO!" He roars, the power of a True Alpha, shaking the room.

Theo's eyes fly open, blue bleeding into his irises.

He blinks, and then shoots up, "Where is she?" He demands. 

"Who?" 

"My daughter, where is she?" Panic and worry seeps into his voice as he moves the blanket over him, "Where is she?" He roars.

"Hey, hey, calm down, she's right here."

Scott turns around, gently lifting the sleeping child off the couch and placing her in Theo's arms. He visibly relaxes at the sight of her. He brings her close to him, his face buried in the crook of her neck as he inhales her scent. He lets out a strangled cry as he smells Electra on her. He takes his hand and flicks his claws out, before the pack could react, he plunges his hand into the back of her neck.

"Theo no!"

It was too late, his eyes flutter close.

-

_"Hey baby."_

_Theo lets out a shuddering breath, tears pooling in his eyes _

_"I'm so sorry, I tried my best but they're coming, protect her Theo, protect Thea. I love you so much baby, I love you both so much."_

_He watches with tears streaming down his face as she places a kiss on Thea's forehead. _

-

He pulls his claws out, eyes red as tears continued to make their way down his face. 

"I'm so sorry baby." He mutters, placing a kiss on his sleeping child's forehead.

He looks up to see confused faces. 

"Theo are you okay?" Scott asks tentatively.

"Yeah, I'm totally fine, it's not like I was held captive by some psychotic bitch torturing me about some stupid Latin word, who then tried to kill my daughter, and then watched the woman I loved sacrifice her life. Oh yeah, I'm peachy." He deadpans. 

"Theo." Scott says pointedly.

"All right, all right, don't get your panties in a twist."

"Theo, what happened?"

"I was out in the preserve when that psychotic were pulled a gun out on me, we fought and she stabbed me with something and I passed out. When I woke up she started interrogating me about something called the _Ius Vitae, _and when I didn't tell her what she wanted started pumping me with some crazy mixture of something or the other and adrenaline, I don't remember much." He took a breath, calming himself, "She kept me drugged, when I didn't give her she wanted to hear, she got Thea, and tried to hurt her, something in me snapped and I escaped."

"Your daughter's name is Thea? Could you be more self centred?" Malia snorts.

"Really that's your takeaway from the whole story? Theo deadpans.

Malia shrugs in response.

"Where is she?"

"How the fuck am I supposed to know?"

Scott makes a face, "You literally ran from her."

"Sorry for not taking notes on where I was being tortured, I was a bit preoccupied with trying to save myself and my daughter and ya know trying not to die, I'll be sure to take notes next time."

"Theo." Scott warns.

He holds hand up in surrender, a smirk on his face.

"Dadda?"

He looks down, eyes filling with love as he stares at her.

"Hey baby, how are you?" He whispers.

"Happy, momma?"

Theo's face falls, "Momma's gone, she was very brave and loved you very much, loved you so much baby." 

"Gone?"

He nods, tears once again making their way into his eyes. He watches as her face twists into one of understanding and then sadness as tears fall from her face. He holds her, her body shaking as she sobs into his chest.

Malia mutters something under her breath before stalking out the door, though he pays no mind, all his attention is on his daughter. 

"My patient wakes up and no on bothers to tell me that?" Melissa drawls, "You know considering the fact that he nearly died, then actually died."

Everyone looks to the floor with sheepish looks on their faces.

"I died?"


	4. FOUR

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> theo does some explaining and memories resurface

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i really liked the idea of supernatural creatures being able to turn off their humanity and thought it was be an interetsing thing to introduce. the idea obviously came from tvd, i found it fascinating that you couldn't feel any remorse or huilt over your action and i though it would be nice to incorporate it into my version of his backstory. 
> 
> to be fair i hate tvd and the only reason i got up to season 5 was because of damon, i couldn't stand to watch it after.
> 
> this also has not be beta'd so yay!

**THEO HAD DIED, **like actually physically died.

"Yes, for a full 3 minutes." Melissa explained, "You nearly died on the operating table, if Scott hadn't bitten you, you would've died earlier and I doubt you would've made it, considering the extent of the damage that you endured."

"I - you bit me?" Theo questions, his stoic mask slipping, vulnerability peaking out.

"I had to, you were going to die." 

"Thank you."

"You do have explaining to do." Melissa gestures to the now sleeping Thea.

A fond smile makes its way onto to Theo's face.

"She's 2, we had her when we were 16-"

"Is she a chimera?" Scott asks.

"She was, but something happened and she nearly died so the Alpha of her pack bit her."

"What happened?" This time it was Stiles, curiosity glinting in his eyes.

"I don't know, she wouldn't tell me, said it was better if I didn't know."

"Who?"

"Electra." His voice just above a whisper.

"Is she Thea's mother?"

He nods, not trusting himself to speak. 

"She was chimera as well right?"

"Yeah," His voice cracks as tears threaten to spill, "She was the first successful female chimera, part wolf and part coyote, like me. I met her when I was 15, she had been dying when they found her, some guy t-boned her car, her family had died on impact and she was on life support."

-

_"This one." _

_Theo watched as they injected the girl with a silvery liquid, and within seconds, the monitor started beeping wildly before flatlining. Doctors came rushing in as Theo and the doctors slinked back into the shadows, watching as they tried to save her but couldn't._

_"Time of death 21:09 hours."_

_-_

The pack looked at him expectedly, waiting for him to finish.

"When she made it, they told me I had to start training her. So I did, and somehow we ended up together, when we found out she was pregnant, we'd been together for almost a year. I helped her escape after that, they weren't happy, I don't remember much after helping her - there was a letter, she told me about Thea and how there was an Alpha who helped her. They tried looking for her but they never found her," A satisfied smiles makes its way onto Theo's face, "She was always good at hiding."

-

_"Electra!"_

_Theo looks around, smelling the air for her fruity scent. He smirked when he caught it, it was very faint, but it was there. He followed it to the edge of the lake, expecting her to be there. The smirk falls off when he gets there, her scent was gone and there was no heartbeat._

_"Boo!"_

_Theo yelps at the sudden noise, falling into the lake. He glares at her, though there's no bite to it._

_"Oh you should've seen your face, it was probably the greatest thing I've ever seen." She laughs._

_"Oh really, I bet it couldn't beat your face when I do this." _

_He jumps and tackles her, arms around her waist as they roll towards the forest. _

_"Theo!" _

_He laughs as she smacked his arm. He sticks his arm out and she grabs it, hoisting herself up._

_"I still can't believe I fell for that." He mutters into her ear._

_"You'll always fall for me." She smirks._

_"That I will."_

_-_

"Where is she now?" Liam's asks.

Theo looks at him, he can't believe he hasn't caught up, how on earth is a senior.

"She's dead, the woman who kidnapped me killed her."

Liam lets out a small noise, and mutters an 'I'm sorry'. 

"Are you sure you don't remember where she held you?" Scott asks.

Theo closes his eyes and thinks, everything is a blur. His eyes fly open, his heart rate increasing.

"Sewers, in the dread doctors lab."

No says anything.

"Are you sure?"

Theo deadpans.

"Alright, alright."

"All of you out, I need to check on my patient."

Everyone walks out, leaving Theo, Thea and Melissa alone. 

He lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding. The smell of the pack overwhelming him as he takes in a deep breath, a connection he was not used to.

"Breathe in." 

The cold stethoscope sent a shiver down his spine as he took a deep breath in.

"Out."

He does it a few more times when Melissa instructs him. 

He gently lays Thea on the the bed as Melissa lifts his shirt up, inspecting the healing cuts. He hisses and winces in pain when he touches one of them.

"You're healing well, another day and you should be fine-"

"How much is it?"

Melissa blinks, caught off guard by the question, "I, uh, I'm not sure, it should be around $30,000, give or take."

Theo sighs, he doesn't even have $30, let alone $30,000. He nods and she instructs him to take rest, not to strain himself too much.

-

_He can't breathe, salt water stinging his eyes. He gasps for air as his head is yanked back up._

_"Where is she?" They hiss._

_He lies, "I don't know, I swear!"_

_He's gotten pretty good at it, his heartbeat remains steady as they listen to it._

_He's back underwater, thrashing, his lungs screaming for air. _

_"Tell us."_

_"I'm telling you, I don't know where she is!"_

_He doesn't remember how many times the back and forth went, all he knows is he woke up on the cold concrete floor, shivering, wishing for a different life._

_-_

He wakes up gasping, eyes wide, taking in his surroundings. He's still in the hospital, Thea by his side, for now, that's all that mattered to him. He collapsed back onto the bed, pulling up the scratchy blanket as he pulled her closer, wanting the warmth that she provided.

He closes his eyes once more, hoping that the suppressed memories don't claw their way out of the corner of his mind where he buried them. But when have things ever gone they way they want him to.

-

_Tears stream down his face, his chest heaving as he sat there paralysed, waiting for his bones to mend themselves back together. He doesn't make a noise though, he won't give the satisfaction that they crave so much. His eyes dart to the corner of the room, where they stood, taking notes on his condition, the hissing and whirring of the machines a constant in his torture._

_Every bone they could break, they broke. He was still their experiment after all, so of course they continued to run tests on him, even when he it meant he would suffer, though he was pretty sure these tests were made so that he suffered, a punishment for letting her go._

_It had been 3 months since he last saw her, 3 months since he could hold her, 3 months since her fruity scent enveloped him and 3 months since the torture began. He can't remember what they did to, gaps in his memory that he couldn't quite understand, mere flashes of what they did to him. He couldn't remember a life before this, he vaguely remembered his parent, Tara, Electra - it all seemed so far away. _

_Maybe it was then that he decided that emotions were a burden to him, a luxury that he couldn't afford to have, they were hindering his progress to become the powerful chimera he was destined to be. In that moment of weakness, he made a decision, he locked up his humanity and became the monster he was finally meant to be._

_-_

He doesn't wake up in a cold sweat this time. He wakes up feeling, drained and numb, something he's used to; a sad familiarity that comforted him in ways it shouldn't have.

"Hey, you're awake." 

He rolls his head to the other side, green eyes meeting blue.

"How are you feeling?" Liam asks, voice full of genuine concern.

"Like I died ."

Liam sighs, "You don't have to be a dick! I'm just trying to be nice."

"Language Liam!" Theo hisses, gesturing to his sleeping daughter.

Liam's eyes widen at that, realising that there was a child in the room, "That's gonna take time getting used to." 

Theo smiles, looking down at her, "Yeah it is." He whispered.

"Why Thea? Why not something else, anything else?" 

Theo looks up, his smile disappearing, "Are you saying there's something wrong with her name?" He adds a growl at the end, just for effect.

"What? No!" Liam sputters, "It's wonderful name, a beautiful one, suits her!"

Theo laughs, his eyes crinkling, his chest slightly shaking.

Liam pouts, "Theo!" 

He continues laughing, unaware of the blue-eyed boys' own smile.

"C'mon, tell me why you chose Thea."

Theo sighed, "I didn't choose it, Electra did - it was her way of keeping me alive I guess, her last hope."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Theo said nothing, opting to shift in his bed and bring Thea closer to his chest.

"Theo?"

"I'm really tired, can we do this later?"

Liam stiffens, but nods and walks out, once again leaving Theo. Memories rush back to the surface of his mind, he closes eyes, forcing the bile back down his throat.

_Theo reads the letter, his hand shaking, humanity inching out._

'_Theo,_

_She's here, she finally here, she looks just like you. She has your green eyes and crooked nose, she even wrinkles her nose the same way, and your smile. God do I miss your smile._

_Her name's Thea, Theadora Tara, to honour you and Tara._

_I've heard things Theo, things I know my Theo can't do. I need you to fight through what they're doing, please. Fight for me, fight for Thea, fight for us, please Theo.'_

_He lets out a humourless laugh, there wasn't an us to fight for. He smells salt and sadness; the ink on the paper smudged where her tears left a stain - it should've hurt him, but it didn't, he didn't feel anything expect for the thirst for power. _

_He watched as the paper burnt, the ashes falling down. His humanity burnt with it, destroying every fraction of the old Theo that wanted to come out._

He couldn't control himself as he threw up, his chest heaving. Bile burnt his throat, he gripped the sink harder, trying to ground himself as the repressed memories came back. He stands up, hands shaking and splashes cold water onto his face. He walks back out only to be greeted by the rest of the pack, including Nolan and the new kid Alec. 

"What? Do I have something on my face?" He tries to lighten up the mood, clearly aware that they all heard him throwing up in the bathroom.

"Are you-" Scott starts.

"I swear if someone asks me if I'm okay one more time, I'm going to kill someone."

Everyone around him stiffened, unsure if he was joking or not.

"It was a joke, oh my god. Does this pack have no sense of humour?" 

No one laughs.

Theo shakes his head and walks back tot he bed where Thea was stirring awake.

"Dadda?" 

Theo smiles, a proper smile that reaches his eyes, "Hey sunshine." 

Thea smiles back at him, snuggling closer into his chest as he hoists her up. She mutters something in Theo's ears, causing him to giggle. 

The pack watched bewildered, eyes glued to the two werewolves in front of them. Too busy staring at the interaction to actually listening to what they were giggling about.

"This is so weird, I can't." Stiles mutters, his hand rubbing over his face. 

Theo doesn't notice though, he was too busy playing with his daughter to realise everyone else' discomfort.

"Theodore Raeken!"

Theo jumps at the sound of Melissa's voice, a sheepish smile on his face as he turns around.

"What did I tell you?" 

"To take rest," He mumbled, cheeks flushing red.

"And what aren't you doing?"

"Taking rest." 

"Back to bed." She orders.

Theo complies, he does not want to on the bad side of the nurse again.

He sits back down, Thea resting on his legs. He watches her enthusiastically babbling nonsense while Melissa does another round of checkup. Melissa changes the IV line and for a second he's back in the sewers, being fed the poison while his body slowly deteriorates.

"Hey, Theo, it's okay, you're here now, you're alright." 

It was Liam's gentle voice that brought him back, he didn't even realise he shifted. His claws were out, digging into his palms. He lets out a shaky breath, before composing himself. He'd let them see enough.

He nods stiffly and looks back down at his daughter, green eyes meeting green eyes and for now that was all that mattered to him.

-


	5. FIVE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> theo deals with being homeless

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have like no clue how much anything costs in America and i'm freeballing it so yeah, prices are probably like way off and completely unrealistic but bear with me please

**THEO HATED THE COLD, **he hated how it seeped into his bones and didn't let go. No matter how hard he tired, he couldn't stay warm.

It was like being in hell all over again. The cold table, the cold floor, her cold hands wrapping around her heart as she ripped it out of his chest. 

He let out a sigh as he wrapped the blanket tighter around Thea, making sure that she was warm, she was his first priority. He closed his eyes, wrapping his arms around her, basking in her warmth as she lay on his chest; and for the first time since he came back from hell he slept peacefully, lulled to sleep by the tiny fluttering of her heartbeat.

-

Theo woke up to 3 rapid knocks on his window. He woke up fully alert, fear making it's way under his skin, only to realise that it was a deputy. He groaned, carefully manoeuvring in the back seat so that he doesn't wake her up. 

The car rumbles to life, releasing a quiet hum as he pulls out of the empty parking lot. He glances towards the back seat where Thea was sound asleep, her chest rising and falling steadily. 

He drives around for a bit before ending back at the preserve, that was the only place where the deputies didn't bother him. He didn't sleep though, aware of every movement around him - he couldn't risk being taken, especially with Thea here. 

He didn't end up sleeping that night, he instead chose to catch up on the million assignments that he was assigned. 

-

_"You're finishing school."_

_Theo managed to mask his surprise, "What?"_

_Scott looked at him impassively, "You have to finish school, you're gonna go with Liam and the rest of the pack to finish senior year."_

_"Like hell I am!" Theo protested._

_"It's easier that way, you'll have something to occupy yourself with."_

_'And you can keep an eye on me.' Theo thinks, his mood souring._

_He chooses to glare at Scott, who seemed completely unaffected by it. It wasn't the fact that he didn't want to finish school, hell he enjoyed learning, it was the fact that his dwindling source fo money had to be spent on supplies, he was barely eating, occasionally dumpster diving and eating whatever wold animal crossed his path in the preserve was how he was surviving right now. _

_Though he could now have a proper shower if he snuck in, the muddled smell of his sweat and a million other hating would finally be washed off him - he could also wash his clothes without blowing away money on laundry._

_He sighed, walking away from Scott, but not before reassuring the overbearing Alpha that he'll go to school._

_-_

Theo smiles fondly at the memory, going to school gave him second chance - he was able to maintain a 4.0 GPA while balancing the supernatural life in Beacon Hills. His time had been relatively peaceful (until he had been kidnapped of course), other than that, it was weirdly calm, save for the odd supernatural creature now and then, along with a few straggling hunters. He was finally at peace with himself. 

"Dadda?"

Theo turns around, scooping up Thea and placing her on his lap, her back resting against the steering wheel.

"Hey baby, did you sleep well?"

She nods, rubbing her eyes, "Want food."

As if on cue, both their stomachs rumble. He sighed, he was loathing this part.

He fished out his wallet, pulling out $25. He had to buy her clothes, toiletries, food and toys - he couldn't afford that, he was barely able to fend for himself, let alone a child. 

He runs his hand through his head, he'd done some quick math in his head, he'd probably have to buy everything from the dollar store and find cheap food, he probably won't eat for a while, and couldn't fill the truck's tank, meaning he'd probably have to walk to everything until someone called him back.

It wasn't that Theo didn't want a job, he'd scoured through every opening available in Beacon Hills but not a single one of them had called him back, the town had somehow suppressed their memories of the whole hunters and Anuke-ite fiasco but still had this feeling of uneasiness around them. It's like a part of them remembers the supernaturals but they don't exactly remember it, either way no one hired him and now he was desperate.

-

It took him an hour to walk to the nearest dollar store, the whole time Thea was rambling about anything and everything, though half of it was absolute nonsense (Theo was a man of many talents, but understanding baby babble was sadly not one of them). He didn't mind it though, it kept him happy, her voice provide a sense of comfort he hadn't felt in a long time.

The scent of cheap plastic hit his nose and it took everything in him to not gag. Ever since Scott bit him, his sense feel like they've been dialled up to 200. It was like he'd been living in 360p before and now he's living in 1080p, he could hear and smell things miles away, even his emotions had been dialled up, it explained why he broke down so easily - he had no control and he hated that. But it explained everything, he finally understood why wolves needed to be with each other, surrounding themselves with their pack, why Liam had trouble controlling his anger. He felt emotions in a way he never had before and it scared him, he was so used to being _in _control that when he wasn't, he felt like he was drowning, desperately clinging onto a thread to pull himself out, each piece slowly unraveling the more he pulled.

He now had $20 left, he bought 2 brushes, soap, a towel and toothpaste for them. He had to buy food, clothes and possibly toys if he could. He walks up to the customer service desk, readjusting Thea so that she was on his hip and she played with his shirt.

"Are you guys hiring?"

The woman looked at him, her eyes hiding as she recognised him, unease oozing off her in layers, "Uh, no sorry."

Theo wanted to roll his eyes, he glanced at the pile of application forms that were lying next to her and walked back out scoffing - if only he could leave this stupid town.

-

_Theo had just been discharged, Thea on his lap sleeping soundly as Parrish drove him back to the preserve to his truck. The drive was quiet, and Theo liked that, he knew is someone else was here they'd bombard him with questions._

_He watched as Parrish drove away, leaving them alone in the preserve. He settled into the driver seat, strapping Thea in the back with minimal effort, small snores escaping her mouth. He was going to get the hell away from this Godforsaken town._

_He was so close, he tried before but something always came up (and it totally wasn't the incessant need to protect the beta with anger issues, not at all), but now it was his daughter's safety on the line and he would do anything to make sure that she was safe. As soon as he crossed the border, driving past the 'You're Now Leaving Beacon Hills, Come Back Soon!' pain flared in his chest, causing him to loose control as nearly crash into a tree._

_He pulled over to the side of the road, his chest heaving as he waited for the pain to subside, it didn't. He groaned in agony, leaning back onto the seat, clothing the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white from the sheer force of it. _

_He didn't know how long he sat there, waiting for the pain to go but it never did, not until he decided to put his car in reverse and try to get to Scott. _

_The pain stopped once he was back in Beacon Hills, it stopped as soon as he crossed the sign again. _

_-_

He now had $9 left, he bought her new clothes, finally able to take her out of one of his old shirts and into clothes that actually fit her - sure it didn't smell very nice, it was from goodwill after all but hey, he could only buy what he could afford and he would give her the world if he could.

"Dadda! Food!"

She started to cry, he big green eyes filling with tears. 

"Hey, hey, we're going to get you food, yeah?"

Thea nodded, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. He placed her on his shoulders and held onto her legs. She giggled, enjoying the change.

"I fly daddy! Fly!"

Theo laughs, warmth spreading through his heart, a feeling he hadn't felt since Electra.

The walk to Target was much more eventful than the others, Thea was in a better mood, which caused him to be in a better mood. She pointed out random things on the way, and he went along with it, also pointing random things.

-

He was officially broke, he had no money left, at least Thea happy, she was munching on an apple, her fangs dropping. It took everything in him to not coo at her and then he did, he'd be damned if he didn't, he was her father after all.

He walked back to the truck, he was exhausted, walking everywhere with little food in his body took a toll on him pretty quickly and he wondered how he did it when he was a chimera. He glanced at the dashboard, it read _6:14 p.m. _He still had one option left, and he was desperate.

He pulled up at the Animal Clinic, and sat there for about ten minutes, contemplating whether he should just look for another job somewhere else. He glanced back to Thea, who was currently preoccupied with a shitty $1 doll and soldier toy and steeled his nerves. He got out the car and stopped Thea, who quickly stopped protesting at being removed from the truck when he gave her the toys.

"Theodore, I was wondering when you were going to come in, how can I be of assistance to you?"

He rubbed the back of his neck, "I was, uh, wondering if you had any vacancies available, I really need the money and I was hoping you had a free spot."

Deaton cocked his head to the side every so slightly, taking in Theo's uncomfortable stance, "I suppose I could use some help around here, things have been more hectic after Scott left."

He let out a breath of relief, he could finally support them.


	6. SIX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> theo finds a home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> do i have a mock tomorrow? yes.  
should i be studying? yes.  
am i studying? no  
hotel? trivago

**THEO IS EXHAUSTED, **he hasn't slept properly for ages and his food supply is slowly dwindling, most of it going to Thea and whatever she doesn't want Theo eats, but that's not nearly enough to sustain a fully grown werewolf - he's seen how Scott and Liam eat, he's barely having a fraction of that. He shifts in the seat, adjusting Thea's position, pulling her closer to him. Her chest rising and falling as she sleep soundly.

He thinks he's hallucinating when he sees the $5 bill lying on the floor of his truck. He blinks a few times, waiting for the green bill to disappear, it doesn't. He tentatively reaches out for, hoping it doesn't vanish like the spider. His hands grasp it and he lets a small _whoop_ out of joy, he had actual physical money in his hands. 

Thea wakes up a few hours later, complaining about feeling hungry. He grabs the last of his food and gives it to her, ignoring the rumbling of his own stomach. She makes a happy noise and continues eating the apple and stale sandwich. He buckles her in the back and gets into the driver seat and drives to the high school, the truck groaning from the lack of use. 

He gets there and parks his car by the entrance, glad that no one had come yet, a quick glance at the dashboard told him that he had at least an hour and half before anyone showed up. He gets out and grabs the duffle bag and hoists Thea so that she'd resting on his hip. He walks to the entrance and flicks his claws, and picks the lock, hissing in pain when he nearly snaps one. The door opens with a small _creak_, he quickly rushes inside and and closes it shut. He trudges to the locker room and drops his bag on the bench.

He lets out a yelp when the cold water hits him, what he would do for a warm shower. He scrubs himself quickly, not wanting to be under the cold water. He sneaks a glance at Thea, who was sitting on the bench, finishing the last of their food. Guilt quickly makes its way into his stomach at the though of subjecting Thea to the cold shower, but he didn't have a choice. He mutters a quick _'sorry baby'_ before turning the shower on. She lets out a yelp, and then tears form in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry." He whispers.

He dries her down and walks back to the truck, dumping his stuff in the back. He grabs Thea and put her on his shoulder, she laughs and squeals. He smiles, warmth filling his chest as he walked to Deaton's.

\- 

Theo is absolutely knackered and school hadn't even started. He'd dropped Thea in the care of the cryptic Druid who had watched him wearily when he explained why he couldn't hire a baby sitter, clearly not believing the excuse of 'most of them were in school and he didn't trust the day care workers with his daughter', he didn't say anything though, just nodded at Theo and took the confused child.

By the time he got back to the school, the parking lot was filled with various cars and he recognised Mason's car, parked right next to his. He rolls his eyes and grabs his things from the car and makes his way into the building, ignoring the curious looks he got form everyone. 

"-sick, he was in the hospital."

"- got into a fight."

"- has a kid."

The slammed the locker harder than he needed to, startling the people around him who were talking about why he missed school. Annoyance rolling off him in waves as he stalked towards his first class, he let out a huff when he saw people staring at him - why couldn't people mind their own business?

"Morning Mr. Raeken, good to see that you're felling better." Ms. Martin greets him.

He nods in response, not wanting to make the effort to talk. He can feel everyone's eyes on him, he hates it and is glad when Liam comes barreling into the biology class, the attention now on him instead of Theo.

"Nice of you to join us Mr. Dunbar," She remarks glancing at her watch, "You got lucky this time, one more late and it's after school detention for you young man."

Liam flushed red and nodded, rushing to his seat but not before smiling at Theo. Theo gives back a tight-lipped smile and a nods, unsure how to react to the beta. He stared at ahead, not really paying attention to what she was saying, his mind was to preoccupied with the blue-eyed boy sitting in front of him. 

He hated sitting in such a crowded room, the millions of scents in the room giving a head ache, but it was Liam's scent that helped him clam down. His scent smelt like fresh rain tinged with ocean breeze, there was an underlying scent of fruit that reminded him of Electra. His heart ached at the thought of her, he loved her. He remembers what being in love felt like, the little butterflies that danced in his stomach or the rush of adrenaline he felt when they were together and he hated that he started to feel those things with Liam. 

"Theo!"

He snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Ms. Martin voice.

"Sorry what was the question?" He muttered sheepishly.

She sighs, "What is the difference between a heterozygous and a homozygous organism?"

"A heterozygous organism has two different alleles whereas a homozygous has two of the same alleles."

She nods and he can smell the disappointment on her, clearly she was hoping that he would get it wrong, he never understood why teachers enjoyed embarrassing students.

The rest of the class goes by quickly, he hardly plays attention to her, he was too busy trying not to fall asleep in her class. He could feels Liam's eyes on him as he walked towards AP Lit, his next class. 

"What do you want?" Theo huffs, annoyed at the fact that Liam would nots to staring at him.

"Nothing!" He squeaks, "I mean, I just wanted to make sure you're all right."

The resists the urge to smile like an idiot and instead smirks, "I'm touched Dunbar, who knew you cared about the murderous chimera."

Liam scowls and says lowly, "I'm just trying to be nice, and you're not a murderous chimera, not anymore, you're just an asshat of a werewolf" 

Theo freezes at the acknowledgement, and his stomach does a little flip.

"Whatever," He mutters, "I'm getting late for class."

He pushed past Liam and walks into class, heading for his seat at the back. 

He doesn't pay attention in this class either, well he does, but not to the teacher. He stares at the back of Liam's head, his words playing on a loop in his head. He didn't even realise the bell had rung until he saw everyone rushing out of class. He quickly packs his stuff and bolts, heading for his locker, cursing himself when he realises that he didn't finish his assignment for AP world history - he hoped the teacher would cut him slack, given the fact that almost everyone knew he was in the hospital and now had a kid.

He walked into class and muttered a quick apology for not finishing his work.

The teach tuts, and gives him a look, "This better only happen once Theo, I expect better from you."

Theo suppresses an eye-roll and nods, _I'll try and not get kidnapped next time_, he thinks bitterly. 

\- 

Lunch comes quick and he successfully manages to avoid Liam, Mason and Corey. He glances at the clock in the hallway, if he ran now, he could make it to the clinic and be back for the rest of the day with 10 minutes to remain. He drops his back in his truck and runs to the clinic. 

"Dadda!"

Theo smiles and picks her up, twirling her around as he inhaled her scent, the animal inside him calming down when her strawberry and pine scent hits his nose.

"Shouldn't you be in school?" 

Theo jumps at the voice and turns t see a stoic look Deaton staring at him.

"It's lunch and I wanted to see her." He explains, "How was she, not giving you any trouble or anything?"

Deaton shakes his head as he smiles, "She's an angel."

A sad smile makes its way onto his face, "She gets that from his mother."

Deaton gently takes her away from him, "You should get back to school."

Theo nods, shaking off the feeling of longing, "Yeah, you're probably right."

-

He makes it back with 2 minutes remaining. 

Just as he was about to make his way into his last lesson, he's cornered by the three of them.

"Where were you at lunch?" Mason eyes him suspiciously.

Theo rolls his eyes, "Why do you care?"

"Just answer the question Theo."

He narrows his eyes at the human, "I went out on a killing spree, had to calm down ya know?" He snarks.

"Theo." This time it was Liam, his voice warning.

He growls, "It's none of your business what I do in _my _free time."

Liam growls back, yellow bleeding into his eyes, "We're pack Theo, whether we like it or not and it's my responsibility to make sure that everyone is safe."

Theo snorts, "Yeah you're doing a great job of that," It was a low blow and he knew it.

Liam's eyes soften and Theo hates that he feels guilty, he sighs, "Look I'm sorry, I didn't mean it, I was at Deaton's, visiting Thea okay?"

Liam nods stiffly, clearly still thinking about Theo's comment. Theo reaches for Liam's wrist, "Look I didn't mean it okay? You're doing a good job of protecting your pack and the town okay? I just don't like it when people put their noses into my business."

Liam seems less tense and Theo lets out a quiet sigh of relief and they walk into class.

"Nice of you four to join us," The teacher remarks and Theo wants nothing more than to smash his head in with a chair, he instead mutter out a _sorry,_ walks to his seat next to Liam and prides himself on his self-control.

-

The rest of the day was uneventful and went by quicker than Theo expected. He grabbed his things and walked towards Deaton, leaving his car parked in the lot, he was running dangerously low on gas. The walk took longer than usual, he was spent, he managed to take a quick nap in the one lesson he didn't share with Liam, Mason or Corey but he was still tired form the lack of food. His stomach rumbled loudly at the though of food and Theo hated it. 

He wonders if things would've been different if he ran with Electra, would they have raised Thea together, taking turns to look after her? Theo sakes his head, clearing his mind of _what ifs_. He didn't run and that was it. A small part of him wishes he ran with her, but he knew if he did they would've got him, they always did and worse he wouldn't have met Liam or the rest of the pack.

-

_Theo ran, not daring to look back. He pushed his 10 year-old body as hard as he could. Ignoring the growing pain on his leg._

_He lets out a sigh of relief as he makes it out of the preserve and into the town. Just as he was about to run again, cold hand grab him._

_Theo screams as they drag him back to their lab. He's kicking and fighting but he's no match for the three immortal scientists. _

_~_

_Theo's 13 when he tries to run away again. _

_They find him just as quick as before but this time the consequences are worse than before. They pump him full of chemicals and watch as he slowly whiters away and then pull the plug just before everything goes black._

_That's when he learns that it's juts better to do what they say and not resist it._

_-_

He walks towards the back where he drops his things and goes to see Thea.

"Hey sunshine." He coos at her.

"Dadda!" She giggles.

He laughs with her, enjoying the small mundane moment.

"Theodore."

Theo nods at the vet, "That's not my name by the way, it's just Theo."

"Ah, my apologies just Theo."

Theo smiles back at the vet, not expecting the humour from the older man.

The bell jingles and a lady walks in with a pit-bull. She looks distraught, worry oozing off her, causing Theo to wrinkle his nose as she frantically explains that he was hit by a car. 

He watches as Deaton gently grabs the dog and places it on the operating table.

"Theo can you go get me my bag."

He nods and rushes to the back where Deaton kept his bag.

"Mrs. Price could you wait outside, I need to make sure that nothing's broken and it would be easier if you weren't here."

She nods, dazed and walks out shaking.

"Theo I need you to his pain while I reset the hip."

"I-I don't think I can."

"I know you can, you did it with Gabe at the hospital."

"That was different."

"How?"

Theo doesn't answer, he's too sacred because he knows if he opens his mouth, he's going to breakdown crying.

Deaton takes his hand and place it on the dog and Theo stifles a gasp. Black veins crawl up his arms and his shoulders sag from the pain and exhaustion but he smiles, a new wave of emotions hitting him. He can't stop the tears that form in his eyes but he doesn't let them roll down his cheeks, he smiles through it and ignores his body protesting because it meant that he was finally human (in the most unconventional way of course).

Deaton smiles back at him, a wistful look in his eyes. He grabs the dog and goes back to Mrs. Price who lets out a sigh of relief when he says that it was only a dislocated hipbone. 

Theo glances at the sleeping Thea and for a second he's the happiest man on earth,

-

The rest of his shift was uneventful and he leaves by 6:00, driving to the park. 

As soon as he sets Thea down, she bolts to the swingset and Theo has to run to catch up with her.

"Play dadda! Play!"

Theo can't keep the smile off his face as he hoists her onto to the swing. He couldn't describe the joy he felt, he just laughs along with Thea, reviling in the mundane activity.

20 minutes later Thea's begging to sit on his shoulders and Theo wants to refuse but she pulls out the puppy eyes and Theo's resolve breaks, the next the you know she's on his shoulder, alternating between the sandwich and ice cream she begged him to buy. Theo himself enjoys a cookie dough ice cream as they stroll around the park. The gaping hole in his stomach is nowhere near filled but it's satisfied for now. 

As much as Theo wanted to spend the day at the park doing nothing, he had to finish the mountain of work he'd been assigned (plus is he has to walk another mile he's going to drop dead.)

Thea protests when they sit on the park bench, demanding that they continue walking but Theo knows she can't have her way all the time, he knows he didn't - a stern look from him she quiet downs and plays with her toys instead and its hurts him so much but he knows he has to do it.

Theo knows that murder is bad and that it won't help his standing with the McCall pack, he knows that they'd probably send him straight back down where he'll rot in hell with his dead sisters head through his chest but the prospect of killing his AP World Teacher is so tempting. Maybe he could scare him instead, a nice flash of his eyes, fangs and claws would be enough to send that man running three different ways back to Friday and it takes a good 20 minutes of debating that maybe killing or scaring him wouldn't work and that Theo would have to settle with glares and scowls instead because who in their right mind set 3 essays due on the same day, each 3000 words? He needed to finish them, it was the only class he was failing, he had no access to internet and therefore no access to any of the resources he needed. He would've stayed back in the library but he had to get to work, it was only a week until he gets his first pay cheque and he could finally eat something other than Thea's leftovers. He groans and shuts his book, at least he had the rest of the weekend to finish it, and if he doesn't, he'll come up with some excuse, he was able to charm the pack and destroy them, he could fool his AP World History teacher.

By the time he's done, it's nearly 10 and he's bone dead, he's pretty sure he look like a zombie. A glance at the turk's window confirmed it. His cheeks were flat and his eyes sunken, he looked down and saw that most of his clothes now hung on him instead of actually fitting him. He sighs as he gets in, a fitting fate for the murderous teen.

-

Theo doesn't remember falling asleep but he's startled awake by rapid knocks on the window. He can weakly make out the deputy hat and he groans, he was sure that the BHPD had something against homeless teenagers. He shifts in the seat and turns the truck on and press the accelerator, but instead of zooming odd it pathetically moved forward and sputtered until it died down.

"No, no, no, come on." He mutters.

He tries again, the engine makes another pathetic noise but the car stays still. He looks up to the deputy and prays to all the Gods he doesn't believe in that he'll be able to charm the deputy into being able to spend the night in his truck. The deputy doesn't budge, instead offers a sympathetic smile and tells him to get in the cruiser. Theo huffs and gently takes a sleeping Thea out of the back and holds her as he grabs a toy of hers. The deputy's eyes widen as he sees the sleeping child and Theo can smell the guilt radiating off of him. He's half hoping that the Deputy takes pity on them but alas, he just ushers him to the back of the cruiser and says that he'll have the truck towed and filled up by tomorrow morning. Theo doesn't say anything back.

Theo was fuming, not only did they arrest him, they also had the audacity of leaving him and Thea in a jail cell. He was seriously considering breaking Scott's no killing rule. He glares at the empty spot where the Deputy was previously standing. He could rip his throat out but that would be too messy, maybe a stab, he shakes his head, that would be messy as well - maybe he'd choke him, that would a quick, painless and less messy way of killing someone. He sighs and settles on the cold metal bench, wincing as his back protested. He sighs and the steady beating of Thea's heart lulls him back to sleep.

-

He wakes up to someone banging on the cell bars.

"Stop, she's sleeping!" He hisses, not bothering to look at the person.

"Theo."

Theo freezes, it was Stilinksi. He gets up, making sure that Thea doesn't wake up. He looks up and meets his gaze, deja vu setting in as watched Stilinksi pull out the key card.

"What did you do this time?" He sounds exasperated, and Theo hates it.

"Nothing," He seethes, anger coursing through his veins, "Your deputies seem to have a problem with people sleeping in their cars."

Stilinksi's eyes widen and Theo curses himself for acting on his anger.

"You're homeless?"

Theo snorts, "You know, for a Sheriff, you're quite dense."

Stilnksi scowls.

Theo sighs, "Look you can't tell anyone okay? Not Scott or anyone in the pack, I have a job now, I'm saving up and I'll be off the street before you know it, just don't tell them."

Stilinksi's face softens, "Theo-"

"No, you cannot. Promise me, I know how you weird you guys are about your promises, you cannot tell anyone form the pack."

He sighs in defeat, "Fine, I won't tell anyone from the pack."

Theo smiles triumphantly as Stilinksi ushers him and Thea out of the cell.

"She looks just like you."

Theo stops and offers him a small smile, "Yeah I guess, but let's hope she takes after Electra."

-

He spends the rest of the day at the public library, finishing 2 out of the 3 essays, and catching up on everything he missed. He didn't eat anything but he found another apple lying in the back, and he washed it and gave it to Thea, he was so hungry and he was about to pass out. He glances as the clock hanging from the ceiling and decides to call it a day. It was 6:00 p.m. and he really wanted to sleep. But of course the universe hates him and his phone buzzes.

_Scott McCall:_

_pack meet at my place in 20, be there_

Theo groans, he hopes it doesn't have anything to do with him but nothing ever seems to work in his favour. He packs his stuff and lift the now asleep Thea and trudges to his truck. 

He reaches the McCall house 30 minutes later, just to piss off the pack. He can hear hushed arguing.

"-kill you!"

Everyone freezes when he walks in, it was like he caught them red-handed.

"What?"

"N-Nothing." Liam stammers.

Theo narrows his eyes at him and stays where he is.

"Theo why don't you sit down." Scott suggests.

Theo knows where this is going to go and he hates it, he glances back and sure enough Derek is standing by the door, and while Theo prides himself on his confidence and courage, there is no way that he is ever going to go against Derek Hale.

He sighs and sit down on the sofa, laying Thea down and tucking her in with the throw blanket . He could feel everyone's eyes on him, making him feel like some sort of experiment or magic trick (to be fair, he used to be one before Scott bit him).

"We know about your living conditions and we want to offer you a prop-" 

Theo cuts Scott off and glares at Stilinksi, "You promised me you wouldn't tell them!"

Stilinski smirks at him, "I didn't, I told Parrish and _he _told them."

Theo growls at him causing Stiles to smack his head.

"Do not growl at my dad!"

He growls at Stiles instead who rolls his eyes in return.

"Theo, listen to us-"

"No! It's none of your business," He hisses, "Why do you care anyway huh? I was kidnapped and tortured twice! Two times and not a single one of you noticed!"

He stands up, anger flowing through his veins. Everything around him spins and he falls to the ground with a quiet _thud, _everything turning into black.

-

Theo blinks groggily, rubbing his eyes as they focus on his surroundings. He sees the worried faces of everyone staring at him (save for Malia, Stiles and Corey). 

"I'm fine." He waves them off.

Liam frowns, "You are clearly not fine, you passed out 'cause you got up too quick."

"Happens to the best of us."

Liam glares at him and opens his mouth to say something but was cut off by Melissa.

"Theo, when was the last time you properly ate food?"

Theo wants to lie so bad, but he knows it won't work, so he sighs and answers as quietly as possible (which is stupid considering over half the room has supernatural hearing), "Since before Hell."

The atmosphere changes in the room and the scene of guilt starts to fill the room, and it takes everything in him to not gag at it.

"Right, everyone out." Melissa says, shooing off everyone, leaving only her, Scott, Thea and himself, "You mister, come with me."

He grimaces as he stands up, his joints protesting as he follows her into the kitchen. He sits on the island and watches her heat what looks like pasta. 

"I know how much you hated the white sauce, but thats's all I have right now and you're going to eat."

"Yes ma'am."

She smiles at him and walks back to the living room, presumably to talk to Scott. He savours the taste of the pasta, no natter how much he hates the sauce, he is grateful and relishes every bite, not knowing which one would be his last. He hears crying and freezes as guilt settle in his stomach, he was here enjoying a hot meal and his daughter was crying, probably hungry as well.

He rushes to the living room only to find Thea and Scott playing on the floor. He calms down after that.

"Go eat," Melissa ushers him back to the kitchen.

"But-"

"No buts, I already gave her food, you were out cold for 2 hours and she wouldn't let anyone near you, not even Scott," Melissa explains, "So, go and finish it, if I see a single bit of food left, I'm going to feed you myself." 

Theo ducks his head down, hiding his smile and continues eating. He washes the dish and puts it back in the cabinet, muscle memory guiding him. 

"I've put your stuff in Issac's room, well the guest room, and my old crib's there, for Thea." Scott explains.

"I- Thank you."

Scott smiles at him, and Theo regrets everything he ever did to the pack.

He climbs up the stairs, and walks into the room, the smell of stale dust and the lingering scent of sandalwood hits nose as he sets Thea in crib. He lets out a content sigh as he settles into the bed, grateful that the could sleep in a bed.

-

_"You're barely even human." Scott's voice whispers into his ear._

_He feels his lungs being crushed and filling with blood under the pressure of his claws. _

_He faintly hears Melissa screaming at Scott, saying that he's 'the alpha'. His bones shake as Scott roars, a chilling feeling makes itself home in Theo's body_

_~_

_He gasps as his fly open, but instead of seeing streetlights or the moon, it's pitch black and he tries to move but he can't the space is too small._

_He flies out of the metal box, chest having as he wait for the inevitable. _

_He greets her like an old friend when she rips his heart out. _

_"I'm sorry."_

_He stumbles out of the box, subconsciously clutching his chest. _

_It wasn't Tara this time, it was Scott, his blood dripping onto the pristine white floor of the Beacon Hills Memorial Hospital's morgue. His eyes flashing a bright red and he plunges his hand into Theo's chest._

_"I'm sorry."_

_"You're barely even human."_

_-_

Theo wakes up gasping, his hand finding his chest, felling the rapid pounding of his heart. He sneaks a look at Thea, peacefully sleeping in the cirb, clothing the toy soldier and he calms down a bit. He quietly pad down the stairs and takes a glass, watching it fill to the brim with before chugging it.

"Theo?" Scott's voice was low.

He jumps at the sound, dropping the glass. He curses and picks up the pieces, ignoring the way it cuts him.

"Hey, hey, Theo," His voice is gentle, "It's alright, leave it."

Something about his voice breaks Theo.

"Boys?" Melissa asks, her eyes are groggy as flips the light on.

Theo breakdowns, he can't stop the flood of tears and he doesn't even realise he's shaking until they put their hands on his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." His voice cracks, and he keeps repeating it over and over again.

"Theo, look at me."

He doesn't, all he can see are his hands covered in blood and he thinks it's his.

"Theo."

He doesn't respond.

"Theo." Scott's voice is much stronger, his eyes flashing red and Theo has to look at him, his own flashing blue in response.

"How can you let me stay here? After everything I've done, why didn't you send me back?" His voice is quivering, he clenches his fist to stop his hands from shaking.

"Because you've changed." It was Melissa who spoke, "I saw you at the hospital, taking Gabe's pain, you have to _care _to do that. The old Theo would never have been able to that. And don't that we don't know about you being the bait or making sure that Liam didn't kill someone. You care Theo, and we don't send people to hell if they don't deserve it."

He looks at her bleary eyed, and he can't stop the next wave of sobs that rack through him, this time they hug him. He inhales his Alpha's scent and Melissa's as well, it comforts him, something he hasn't felt in a very long time - he can vaguely remember when he felt like this around his family, and his time with Electra left him like this but nothing was this strong. He was slowly starting to feel like this around Liam and he was terrified of it, because the last time he felt like this, the person had nearly died and he liked (loved, but he's too scared to admit it) Liam and him dying would make Theo feel really, really awful.

They take him upstairs, and quietly place him on the bed. He can vaguely hear Melissa tell Scott something but he's too tired to listen. He watches as Scott leaves the room but not before mutter a '_goodnight_'. Melissa pull the blanket over him and tucks him in. He feels 7 again, memories of a sleepover rushing through his head, memories he didn't even know existed up until know. He remembers her tucking them in, placing a gentle kiss on their foreheads before turning the light off. She obviously doesn't kiss his forehead but she brushes his hear back and gives him a small smile.

"Goodnight Theo."

He doesn't even register what he says, his eyes half closed and, he mutters out a quiet "Goodnight mom."

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know i focused a lot on scott and theo in this chapter and that was because i think they need to develop their relationship, and that's something that's often overlooked by most writers, like i'm pretty sure you're not going to be all chummy with the guy who killed you and you have to work it out. also love melissa, she's and absolute bamf.


	7. SEVEN

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> theo deals with his supernatural status and feelings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have found out that i'm a stress writer, i have an as exam tomorrow yet i spent the better part of the day writing this chapter.
> 
> this is also my longest chapter so far, Jesus.

**THEO STUMBLES OUT OF THE COLD BOX, ** _his hand clutching his chest. He doesn't move though, he waits for her. It doesn't take long for her to find him, he stopped running a long time ago. He can hear the water dripping onto the floor and the ragged breathing of his dead sister, he watches as she crawls into the morgue. Her hand plunges into his chest, her cold fingers wrapping around her heart, he gasps trying to breathe, his lungs screaming for air. The coppery taste of blood fills his mouth and his life flashes before his eyes._

_~_

_The metal was cold against his skin, he breathes heavily, clutching his chest where moments ago her hand was in. He stands there waiting, he doesn't try to calm his breathing, there was no point, she always found him. _

_"Theo." She hisses._

_He didn't need his supernatural hearing to hear that, it echoes everywhere, rattling inside his skull, it was all he could hear. She takes her time this time, almost as if she was enjoying it, Theo doesn't complain though, it's what he deserves._

_He stands there for what felt like an eternity (it probably was, time is different here). She crawls into the morgue, and in seconds Theo's on the floor with her hand plunging into his chest, she doesn't immediately rip it out. She squeezes it harder and pain shoots through him._

_\- _

Theo wakes up feeling numb, his hand were clammy from sweating and his hair matted to his forehead, his head throbbing as he kicks the covers off and walks into the bathroom, he could hear Scott, Melissa and Thea eatng breakfast downstairs. He feels a little less numb. 

He runs his hand across his beard, he never meant to grow it out but he couldn't afford to buy a razor so it grew. He likes it to be honest, but it's gotten a bit too long for his liking and Scott had been kind enough to leave razor and trimmer on the sink. He doesn't even realise he's shaking until the machine is a few inches away from his face, the whirring of it reminds him of his time with the Dread Doctors but he braves it, focusing his hearing on everyone downstairs. Melissa was laughing at something Scott said and Thea was tapping her spoon on the table. He smiles, feeling content. 

He showers and walks downstairs, his hair still damp but not messy, he didn't put in any of the product he nicked from someone during gym - he hated it, the only reason he used it was to make himself look less homeless. They all smiles at him, Thea's being the widest. 

"Dadda!"

Theo smiles, "Sunshine!" He laughs.

He walks up to her and lifts her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. 

"Did you sleep well?" He asks her.

Her eyes widen and she nods her head aggressively, "Very warm."

Theo's heart breaks at that, he was so pathetic, he couldn't even keep his daughter warm.

"Right, Theo eat, I made pancakes for everyone." She gestures to the table, "And the maple syrup is on the counter over there or if you're one go the weird ones, honey is on the left shelf."

He nods and grabs the maple syrup and pours it on his pancakes, setting Thea back in her chair.

"Dude, you're drowning them."

Theo's offended, "Excuse me, I'm not drowning them, I am merely drizzling some syrup."

"Yeah sure," Scott snorts.

Theo chooses to ignore him and continue _drizzling _his pancakes. It had been so long since he had actual breakfast and not granola bars, so he eats it slowly, savouring every bite. The scent of guilt starts to make its way into the air and Theo wants to smack himself, he doesn't need to look up to see where the guilt is coming from, he knows it's from Scott and Theo suppresses the urge to snort, he's feeling guilty for letting the guy who killed him be homeless, and sure Thea played a huge role but Theo made sure that she would be the one to survive but it still astounds him that Scott was willing to let him stay at his place after _everything _Theo had done to his pack - Scott truly does not have any self preservation instincts, he doubts that he'd recognise them even if they'd tap danced in front of him. 

"Scott stop-"

"I'm sorry, I should've noticed sooner." 

Theo doesn't mean to to show his surprise but he does, "Why on earth are you sorry? I'm the one who should be apologising, you had no reason to believe anything otherwise, I'm going to be honest, I don't know how you slept last night, I know I wouldn't be able to look at someone who killed me, let alone let them _sleep_ in my house." 

Scott smiles, it doesn't reaches his eyes and it's a smile of realisation than anything else, but it's a smile nonetheless, "I wanted to kill you when Liam brought you back, and it took every ounce of self control to not to rip your heart out, and then you helped us, even if it was self preservation, you were one of the last people in Beacon Hills, if you left, this whole town would be forgotten, everyone and everything you did would be forgotten and you could've left, started a whole new life," Scott's tone was earnest, "But you didn't, and then you could've left when the hunters showed up, but you didn't, you stayed and fought, you helped save me, Liam and this whole town, whether you realised it or not, you're one of the reasons we're standing here, some of us are alive because you chose not to be selfish and help us. You had plenty of chances to bail or kill us, but you didn't and that proves that you aren't the same, you're trying to change and that's what matters."

"Not everyone," His voice is barely above a whisper, and he's sure if Scott wasn't werewolf, he wouldn't have heard it, "Not everyone's alive, some are 6 feet under."

"But you regret it don't you?" Melissa's voice was quiet but it held conviction.

Theo inhales sharply through his nose, clenching his shaking hands, "Yes, yes - if I could take it back, I would, I would take back every single thing."

Melissa smiles, "Good."

Scott pats his shoulder and gets up, "I have to talk to the Sheriff real quick, I'll be back."

Theo watches as he walks out, taking his now empty plate and washing it. He can see Melissa from the corner of his eyes, cleaning up the table and placing a gentle kiss on Thea's forehead. He can't resist asking her, the question burning his tongue.

"I killed your son," Theo grimaces, not the best way to start a conversation, "Why are you being so nice to me? Why are you doing -" He stops, trying to find the right word but comes up blank so he gestures vaguely instead, "this?"

Melissa sighs, "You did, and I brought him back to life, and then you got sent to hell, and then Liam brought you back, and when I saw you, I wanted to kill you but then it would go against everything I believe in," She was next to him, and Theo felt intimidated by the small woman, "Then I saw you at the hospital, you were a literal human shield for Liam, and then you took Gabe's pain, and from what I know, not everyone can do that, you have to _care -_ we talked about this last night Theo," She sighs, rubbing her eyes, "While a small part of me hates you, it probably will always hate you, a much bigger part of me sees that you deserve a second chance, hell almost everyone in the pack has tried to kill Scott," She laughs, "What's another one huh?"

They can't stop the shock and relief that flood through him at once, how she faced all of them without wanting to murder any of them, he knows if anything like this ever happened to Thea, and prays that it doesn't ever, that it would never come to that, he would rip that person's heart out.

"Alright kiddo, I gotta go, I'm getting late for my shift, the keys are behind the door if you wanna leave, if you leave them under the false rock next to the mat." She ruffles his hair, grabs her coat and walks out, leaving Theo and Thea alone.

Theo lets out a laugh, trying to grasp everything that happened in the past 12 hours. Thea reciprocates it, though he's sure she doesn't really get why he's laughing.

He glances at the clock, _11:30_, he has 30 minutes before he has to reach Deaton's. 

"C'mon, let's get you dressed." He scoops her up and places her on his hip, the position almost becoming a second nature. 

He trudges up the stairs, some more squeaky than others - he made a mental to skip those the next time - and walks into the guest room, he wrinkles his nose at the smell - it doesn't quite smell like him yet, there are faint traces of another werewolf's scent, mixing with his and Thea's scent. He doesn't mind it, it does irk him to an extent but he could deal with it. He sees her down on the bed and opens the dresser, he grabs two dresses and holds it out in front of her.

"Which one?" He asks, "Red or green?" 

"Red! Want red!" She laughs, her hand reaching for it.

Theo smiles, and drops the green dress back into the dresser and walks towards her. He can't keep the smile off his face, and a part of him hates it, the _old_ part of Theo hates it, the part that enjoyed killing people, the one that relished the feeling of fear in people's eyes and the feeling of blood dripping from his fingers and onto the floor below him - he hates that part of him, because no matter how hard he tries, there will always be a part of old Theo living in him. Though a much bigger part of him loves it, the _new_ part of Theo, the one that came from hell wanting a second chance, wanting to change - and this part will always trump the old part of him, every single time. 

\---

Theo's surprised to see a car seat in his back seat - he obviously never bought, he couldn't afford to feed himself a few days ago, let alone buy a car seat, so someone clearly broke into his car and left him a car seat - and by the looks of it, it was Melissa, her scent lingered in his car and on the seat, it was clearly Scott's old seat, his scent was coating it. Theo actively ignores the warm feeling blossoming in his chest that starts to encompass him and buckles Thea in. She fusses, of course she fusses, she hasn't had to sit in a car seat for who know how long - while Electra didn't tell him much about where they were, and who they were with, she did tell him that the pack that took them in tended to stay in the woods and rarely ever came out, only coming out for emergencies - he places a kiss on her forehead, and she calms down a bit, enough for Theo to get in the front seat and drive to the animal clinic. 

The 20 minute drive was uneventful and Thea's anxiety had gone down - Theo was finally able to breathe without feeling like he was going to throw up, though his head was still throbbing with a dull ache - she had fallen asleep and he was amazed at her ability to fall asleep anywhere within seconds; he envied her, what he would do for a nightmare free sleep.

Theo frowns when he sees the sign, '_sorry we're closed!'_, he was sure he had a shift at 12:00 today. 

"Ah Theo, come in." The vet gestures, "The clinic is going to be closed for the next few weeks, I have go to Arizona and then Seattle, so here's your pay cheque for the month." He says, handing Theo an envelope.

He adjusts the sleeping Thea and takes the envelope, masking his surprise at the weight of it. 

"Any questions?"

Theo thinks for a moment, glancing at Thea as the memories of his kidnapping flood his mind.

"Do you know anything about the _Ius Vitae?" _

If he was surprised by Theo's question, he didn't show it, his face remained stoic and his scent reserved.

"Follow me," He gestures for Theo to follow him and Theo does, unable to stop his curiosity. They stop at the back room, and Theo watches as he pulls out an old book.

"The _Ius Vitae_, or more commonly known as the _Elixir of Life_, is a mythical potion that is said to grant immortality to its drinker," He explains, flicking through the book, "It appears in many different cultures across the world, such as China, Japan, India and even in part's of Europe."

Theo frowns, "That's impossible."

"You were once a man of magic and science, nothing is impossible Theo." 

Theo sucks in a sharp breath, "Is it here - I mean is it here in Beacon Hills?"

"I do not know, no one has seen it, it's last known location was in England in the 15th century, whether it exists now or was merely someone's aspiration is the question."

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair, of course the lady who kidnapped him wanted some magical potion to make her immortal and for some reason she thought he had it, Beacon Hills was a mess.

Theo nods at the vet and mutters out a small _'thanks_', and walks back towards his car, he buckles Thea in the back, who somehow is still asleep - he's so jealous - and drives towards Beacon Hills Cemetery. He reaches there in a few minutes, the truck engine slowly dying down as he pulls up to park. He opens the envelope and his eyes nearly fall out of their sockets when he see the amount of money in the envelope - sure he had money, but never as much as he's holding right now - he's holding $1518 in his hands right now. He takes out $300 and stuffs the envelope in his dashboard. He gets out and grabs Thea, and walks to the small shop next to the cemetery.

"Hello sir, how may I help you?" The man asks, his voice calm for someone who works right next to a field full of dead people.

"I need a headstone, a simple one."

"For when?"

"I was hoping today?" 

The man sighs, "I'm sorry sir, but we can't produce one at short notice."

Theo groans inwardly, he needs it today, "I know it's really short notice-" He stops himself, and gazes to the floor, and forces his voice to shake, "But please, her mother-" He takes a deep breath and hunches forward, "My girlfriend just died, she was-" He forces tears to form - though they're not all fake, "She was murdered and we didn't, we didn't have the money to buy-" 

The guys cuts him off, and the scent of sympathy and pity hits him, "It's alright, I think I can get one in I guess 20 minutes, just you wait here."

Theo smirks inwardly as we watches the man head to the back, there was a reason that he destroyed the McCall pack with ease. He stands there and leans against the wall, closing his eyes as memories wash over.

_"What's going on? Where am I?" Her voice is shaking and fear clouding the air._

_"Hey, hey, look at me, you're alright, okay?"_

_"Where am I? Where are my parents, what's going on?"_

_"Electra-"_

_"Who are you, how do you know my name?" She gets up but collapses immediately._

_"Hey, hey-"_

_"Get the fuck away from me," She pushes him and that's when she notices the claws coming out of her hand, "What did you do to me? What the fuck did you do to me?"_

_"If you calm down, I can explain."_

_"Calm down? Calm down? You want me to calm down when there are literal claws coming out of my hands?" She screams incredulously, her voice borderline hysterical._

_"Electra, just listen, I know this is a scary experience but if you just listen I can explain."_

_She sits down shaking and Theo takes this as his cue to explain._

"What name do you want?"

"Electra, Electra Thompson."

"Is there anything else you want written on her grave?"

"No, that's all."

He nods and goes back inside. 

Theo listens to the man's steady heartbeat and the whirring of the engraving machine and falls back into his head.

_"You're a chimera-"_

_"A chimera? A fucking chimera? I've lost it, I've genuinely lost it-"_

_Theo cuts her off by flicking his won claws out and showing them to her, "Yes a chimera, part wolf, part coyote, just like me."_

_She gasps, glancing at her own hands, her scent slowly shifting from fear to disbelief ._

_"You were dying and we saved you."_

_"Dying?"_

"_You were in a car crash, your parent died on impact and you were on life support, we saved your life."_

_"We?"_

_"Yes, the people who saved you made us."_

"_Who are they?"_

_Theo barely suppresses the shiver, "They're called the Dread Doctors."_

_"_Here," The guys says, handing him the gravestone, "That'll be $290"

Theo places the money on the table and walks out, inhaling Thea's scent to cover the smell of rotting bodies. He walks deep into the cemetery where his family is buried and places Thea at the foot of Tara's grave.

"You wait here okay, don't move." His tone sharp but gentle.

He flicks out his claws and digs an indentation for her stone, next to Tracy's grave. He places it, ignoring the aching heart in his chest, as he covers it up.

"I'm sorry." He doesn't know who's he saying it to.

He grabs Thea and places her on his lap and points to each gravestone.

"That's Nanna and Poppa," He says, pointing to the gravestones in the far right, "That's aunty Tara," Pointing to the one he's facing, "Those were daddy's friends and that's momma."

Thea nods and waves to each of the gravestones, "Hi Nanna and poppa, hi aunty Tara and dadda friends, hi momma."

A sad smile makes its way onto Theo's face, the only family he ever had was 6 feet under, and his daughter was saying hi to them - he wonders if there was a different universe where they would've all said hi back to her.

"I miss you momma, dadda nice like you tell but I miss you momma."

Theo wipes his eyes furiously - he killed people without batting an eyes, he killed his _own_ pack for power - he shouldn't be crying. And then Thea's eyes start water and tears start to freely flow from hers.

"I miss you momma."

Anger flows through Theo's veins, he was going to kill that bitch - he's going to rip her heart out and he's going to fucking _enjoy _it - he hugs her tight and holds her as she buries her face into his shoulder, her whole body wracking with sobs. Theo holds back his tears and continues to comfort his crying daughter.

A few minutes later, Thea's body slowly stills as she falls asleep on his shoulder, but Theo doesn't move, he sits there and lets his eyes drift across the gravestones, he killed them, he killed them all, every single one of them would be alive if it wasn't for Theo. He closes his eyes lets the guilt wash over him, they were innocent, they didn't deserve to die.

His eyes fly open when he hears a familiar heartbeat come near him, but it disappears just as fast. He gets up in a hurry and looks around, but no one was there, he knows for a fact that he heard a heartbeat, and sure this was a community graveyard and anyone could come and go as they please but he _knows _the heartbeat, the familiar thumping and the slight stutter before it vanished. He walks back to his truck weary, eyes glancing round every few seconds.

The drive back to Scott's house was tense, his mind sorting through sounds trying to identify whose heartbeat he heard and why it disappeared all of a sudden. His eyes widen, and he shakes his head, clearing his mind, there's no way he would follow Theo, hell he hasn't spoken one word to him since the hunters, and now that he thinks about it, he hasn't spoken one word to him since coming back from hell. 

He parks his car in the McCall driveway and takes the key from the false rock and lets himself in. He closes the door behind him and walks upstairs to the guest room, placing Thea in the cirb and dropping onto the bed. He stares up at the ceiling, letting his mind run a million miles an hour as thinks of where to find the _Elixir of life._

_-_

Theo's jolted awake when the bell rings - he doesn't remember falling asleep. He pads down the stairs and opens the door. 

There's a lot of things Theo expects, he expects that his time is going to run out with the pack and they're going to send him back, he expects that Monroe is going to come back and slaughter them, he also expects that the woman who kidnapped him would come back and finish the job, what he's not expecting is a sword through his torso with Kira holding the handle - no matter how well deserved. He can't do anything as she pushes in him further and slams him against the wall. He can feel his skin trying to stitch itself back around the sword.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Kira seethes, twisting the sword further into him.

He gasps, choking on his own blood, "Liam," He sucks in a sharp breath, trying to talk through the pain, "He brought me back."

She narrows her eyes, clearly not believing him, her eyes flickering between orange and brown.

"Where's Scott?" 

"He's - he's with the Sheriff."

"How do I know you're not lying? Did you kill him, you reek of him."

"I- I'm his beta." He manages to wheeze out, trying to focus on anything but the pain. 

Her eyes widen and she looks like she's about to say something but she's interrupted by Thea's wailing.

"Dadda!" 

Her brows furrow as she tilts her head, clearly listening to Thea.

"Dadda, want dadda!"

Kira snarls, and puts pressure on the sword, "Who is she? Did you take her?"

Theo tries to speak, he really does but his blood is coating his mouth and he can feel it stain his teeth as it dribbles down his chin. 

"Kira!" 

"No!"

Theo looks at the new voices though bleary eyes, he can see yellow eyes yanking her off and slamming her against the wall, he groans at the sudden movement and falls to his knees as pain shoots through him

"Theo, you gotta stay with me okay? Liam! Let her go, we have to deal with Theo!"

He makes out Scott's voice but it's too muffled to actually hear anything, but he nods along any way. He screams out in pain when the sword moves, slicing more organs in its path - and then it's gone. He blinks back the tears as he sees black veins crawl up Liam's arms.

"Thea, you need to get Thea." His voice is wet and he can feel more blood dribble down his mouth.

Liam looks like he's about to protest but closes his mouth shut when Thea wails again. He looks at him one more time, worry blanketing every inch of his face, but lets go of Theo and walks up the stairs. 

"Theo?" Scott's voice is low, comforting almost.

Theo looks up at him through half lidded eyes, fighting through the pain. "Mhmm?" He hums, unable to form words.

"Dadda?" Thea's voice quivers, "Dadda! Blood!" 

She tries to wiggle out of Liam's arms to get to him but he holds her tight and Theo's grateful for that, his skin is still tender and he's pretty sure that she would've jumped on him the second she left Liam's arms. 

"Sunshine, it's alright." He reassures her, but his voice is hoarse, and going by Liam's grimace and Thea's whine there's still blood on his teeth.

The haze clears and the pain subsides, he glances down and sure enough Scott's taking his pain - Theo's shoulders sag with relief and his inhales deeply, a multitude of scents making their into his nose. 

"C'mon let's get you cleaned up." Liam says, his voice gentle. 

He helps Theo to his feet and Theo ignores the butterflies in his stomach - if only they died when he was stabbed. He limps up the stairs as Scott goes back into the kitchen where Kira was waiting, no doubt to explain everything that happened. 

Liam places Thea back in her crib as Theo makes his way into the bathroom.

"Dadda will be back okay? I've got to help him and the you both can play together okay?" 

Theo's - _Tara's_ \- heart fills with joy, and he has to force himself to regulate his heartbeat - he was the chimera of death, he's killed people yet somehow listening to Liam interact with his daughter makes him giddy. The door creak open and Theo watches as Liam takes a towel and wets it, the rushing of water the only sound in the room. He wrings the towel and walks to him, crouching between his legs as he dabs away the blood on his torso, his hisses at the touch, his skin still tender. 

Liam winces, "Sorry."

Theo nods and squeezes eyes his eyes, waiting for the pain to subside. When he opens his eyes again, he staring at an ocean on the verge of a storm, blue eyes swirling with an emotion Theo can't quite place. Theo wants to kiss him, he wants to smother the beta with kisses until he's begging for air. He glances down at Liam's lips and he seems to get Theo's train of thought, he leans forward, just as their lips were about to touch, Scott's voice rings though the room.

"Theo? Liam?"

Liam jumps apart, his face flushing red and his voice cracking ever so slightly when he calls back to Scott, "In here!"

Scott walks into the bathroom, clearly unaware of the tension in the room, and crouches next to him, his eyes full of worry, "Are you okay?"

Theo snorts, "As okay as a person who got stabbed."

Scott smiles, "If I had known she was coming I wouldn't have left you alone."

"Why is she here anyway?" Theo hopes it didn't come out as rude as it sounded.

Scott doesn't seem affected by it, almost as if he'd expected it, "She finished training with the _Skinwalkers_, said she wanted to surprise me."

He says something to Liam but Theo's too tired to listen and instead chooses to rest his head against the wall, the cool tile helping to clear his mind and help ease the dull ache in his head.

He nearly jumps when the towel touches his chin, he forces his eyes open and stares at Liam, he stares at the way his lips curve and his tongue peeks out a bit - he doesn't know how, but he manages not to smile - his eyes roam across Liam's face and he freezes when Liam stares back at him, green eyes meeting blue. Theo swallows down the fear and anxiety and continues staring, he doesn't move or breathe, too afraid to ruin the moment. Liam glances at his lips and Theo can't help remember the time in the elevator when he did the same thing, except Liam actually has the ball to do what Theo wanted to do.

Liam's lips are chapped and taste like mint, but Theo doesn't mind, it's everything he wanted and more. It's a slow kiss, Theo enjoys every second of it, he pull Liam flush against his chest and traps him between his legs. He ignores the taste of his own blood, pouring everything he was too scared to admit into the kiss and continues kissing Liam, his skin exploding when Liam cups his jaw and returns the passion Theo pours in. He breaks away first, his lungs screaming for oxygen, he presses his forehead against Liam's as he sucks in air.

"Liam-"

"You have to tell me if you want this," Liam interrupts him, "If you want an _us_, you _have_ to tell me."

"I want it, I really do, but I don't know if I can."

Liam frowns, "Why not?"

"I- It feels like I'm betraying her, she was alive not two weeks ago, holding _our_ daughter, I don't know Liam," Theo trails off at the end, unsure of how to finish the sentence, he want Liam, he really does, but he's terrified.

"I know she would want you to be happy, I know I would," His voice is soft and comforting and Theo hates him for that, "We can take this slow, _if_ you want to, or we could not do this at all-"

"No!" The prospect scares him more than it should, "No, I want this, we can take it slow."

Nothing could compare to the smile that was on Liam's face, it made him feel like he was flying.

"Okay, we're going to take this slow." He smiles, "C'mon let's get you cleaned up, changed and then we have to go downstairs, the pack's coming over by 6:00."

-

Theo hasn't moved from the bed since Liam helped him clean up, instead he's enjoying being with Thea and Liam as they play one of Thea's games - he could hear the members of the pack filtering into the McCall house but he couldn't be bothered to leave them.

"What's that Thea?" Liam points to one of the wooden shapes lying on his bed.

"Circle!" 

Theo smiles and ruffles her hair, "Good job sunshine."

Thea laughs and puts it into the designated hole for circle in the wooden game.

"You should really enrol her in pre-school, she's old enough to go."

Theo sighs, "I know but she's a werewolf, she could wolf out at any time and we all know Beacon Hills doesn't have the best track record with us. I'd be putting her in danger if I did."

"I get it, but she needs to get an education, if you enrol her into Beacon Hills elementary you could be there any time she wolfs out."

"She's two Liam, I'm sure she can wait a year or more before she goes to school."

Liam hums in response, and continues asking Thea mindless questions. 

"I asked Deaton about the _Ius Vitae," _Theo rubs his hand across his forehead, trying to ignore the dull ache, "He said it's the _Elixir of Life_, that it gives the drinker immortality," 

Liam frowns, "Why would she think that you have it?"

"Honestly I have no idea-"

"The Dread Doctors!" Liam exclaims, "They were like a hundred years old, how were they alive?"

Theo's eyes widen in realisation, "They used electromagnetic waves but also injected themselves with the green goop, which I used to bring back the other chimeras. What if that's what she's after?"

"We have to tell Scott!"

He grabs Thea and rushes down the stairs, ignoring her squawk of protest.

"We know what she's after!" 

Scotts furrows his brows, "What who's after?"

"The woman who kidnapped me," Theo explains, "She said she wanted the _Ius Vitae, _I asked Deaton about to and she said that it meant _Elixir of Life_, it give the drinker immortality, that's why she kidnapped me. The Dread Doctors were alive for over a hundred years, they used electromagnetic waves and a green goo that they would inject themselves with, I used it later to bring back the other chimeras after they were terminated." He doesn't miss the way Corey flinches, when he says terminated. 

"Are you sure that's what she's after?"

Theo nods, "It has to be, otherwise why would she kidnap me and not one of you guys? You're a True Alpha, Liam's your beta, Corey's a werechamelon, Malia is a werecoyote, Lydia is a Banshee, you're all powerful werecreatures, so why me? It has to be because of the Dread Doctors. Deaton said it's last known location was in England somewhere in the 15th century, it doesn't seem impossible that it could end up across the Channel in France 400 years later."

Scott's about to say something, but before he could open his mouth, Theo collapses onto his knees, clutching his head in agony as a low whine escapes his lips. Thea's on the floor next to him looking confused.

"Theo?" 

He can vaguely hear Liam's panicked voice, but it was like he was underwater as the pain grew.

"Theo?" 

He looks back at Liam, who's arm are covered in black veins, "It hurts."

The pain subsides enough that he can see, everyone's looking at him, different emotions on different faces. Liam's, Scott's, Mason's, Corey's and Lydia's face are worried - he's genuinely surprised at Corey's face- while Malia's, Stiles', Kira's Alec's and Derek's remain indifferent. 

"Maybe it's the full moon?" 

Theo furrows his brows and looks at Mason in confusion, "What?"

"The full moon, this is his first transformation since Scott bit him."

"This didn't happen to me though," Liam counters.

"Yeah, you were human and you have IED, anger was probably the only emotion you felt at that time. Theo was a chimera, who knows how his body's reacting to the bite, let alone a True Alpha's bite."

"What about Hayden?" Liam asks, "She was a chimera like Theo, she didn't go through this."

"But she wasn't as strong as Theo, I mean we saw her and her only form was a wolf, she didn't show major signs of being a Jaguar, the doctors tried but it wasn't working so they gave her the basics," Corey was the one to speak this time, "Theo on the other hand was their first successful chimera, he spent 10 years with both a coyote and a wolf, Hayden had both halves a few months at most."

Theo groaned again as another wave of pain rolled over him, this time starting from his spine. 

"Dadda?" Thea's voice quivered.

He smiles at her, fighting through the pain. She looks at him, her eyes roaming across his body, her primal instinct taking over to make sure that he wasn't hurt. He lets out a soft gasp when yellow bleed into her eyes, her fangs dropped and claws sprouted from her fingernails - this was the first time he'd seen her full transform. His own eyes flash blue in response - he notices the sudden shift in Kira's scent before she composes herself and Theo resists the urge to scoff at her.

He can feel claws digging into his arms and glances down to see Liam's claws gripping his bicep, steadily drawing the pain away.

"What if it's his body transforming?" Derek proposes.

They all look at him confused.

He rolls his eyes and sighs, "Like what happened to me, like Corey said, he was a powerful chimera, what if his wolf and coyote are fighting to take place and transform fully into a real werecreature?"

"What like his body's deciding whether it wants to be a werewolf or werecoyote?" Stiles asks.

"Exactly like that, I had to die to fully become an evolved wolf, and for Theo he has to go through this to become a real wolf or coyote, not just a science experiment."

They all ponder over that, it makes sense, though he hopes the wolf wins, he wasn't a big fan of the coyote and it's incessant need to be alone and away from all the other werecreatures - he has no idea how Malia stands it, maybe if the coyote wins he could ask Malia about it, that is if she doesn't eviscerate him the minute she's alone with him.

He doesn't know how long they've been sitting on the floor as Scott and Liam take turns siphoning away his pain.

"I'm going to the preserve." Malia announces, glancing at the clock, "The moon's about to reach its peak."

He watches as she walks away, Derek following her, he assumes that they're going for a run in their animal forms - he used to love running as a wolf, it made him feel free. He can hear the engine start with a low hum and listens to it fade away in the distance. 

He screams as soon as the moon reaches its peak, his whole body feeling like its on fire, flames licking every inch of his body. He can barely feel Liam's and Scott's arm trying to siphon away the pain but it's useless. His eyes burn with unshed tears and he falls onto his arms, trying to ground himself. 

Everything around him dulls, and all he can feel is pain and then it stops. Everything around him comes back to focus, the first he notices is that he is shorter than everyone else, while Theo knows he's short compared to everyone else in the pack, he _knows _that he isn't that short that he's taring at everyone else's kneecaps.

"Holy shit." Mason whispers.

Theo tries to get up but he can't, he looks down and finds himself staring at paws. He lifts one up and looks at it, it was like the one in his wolf form but it was different, it is slightly bigger, but lighter. Realisation hits him, his wolf and coyote had merged somehow - he had the body of a wolf but the stealth of a coyote. 

He yelps when a hand cards through his fur but settles back down when he realised it was Liam. 

"Derek was right," He breathes, "Your body was fighting to see which would come out on top, it was the wolf."

Theo wants to correct him, it was both, but he can't really talk so he choses to walk towards Thea. She looks at him with wide eyes, and then giggles.

"Dadaa!" She claps happily.

He licks her face and nuzzles his nose in the crook of her neck, breathing in her scent. 

"Let's go out." Scott suggests.

Scott lifts up Thea and everyone follows him to his backyard. Theo sucks in a deep breath when he looks at the moon, the deep hum in his bones makes him feel alive. He's never felt this before, this connection with the moon, he was a chimera, an animal of magic and science, not the natural product of nature. 

Two howls ring in the air, Theo glances at Liam's wolfish face and smiles - as much as a wolf can smile - and Liam, almost as is he can sense Theo's smile, smiles back, his fangs on display. They howl back, Scott leading it.

**Author's Note:**

> feel free to check out [my tumblr !](http://ho1yhell.tumblr.com/)


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